r^^

\-^

tv

'^^

(^^

1

^ I 'Si'

^

\>. :!i

n|

•V

'^^

^1-

^

1

Digitized by tlie Internet Arcliive

in 2010 witli funding from

University of Toronto

Iittp://www.arcliive.org/details/familyexposition03blun

FAMILY EXPOSITION

THE PENTATEUCH.

NUMBEES— DEUTERONOMY.

FAMILY EXPOSITION

PENTATEUCH.

REV. HENRY BLUNT, M.A.

RECTOR Of STREATHAM, SURREY, CHAPLAIN TO HIS GRACE THK

DUKE OF RICHMOND, AND FORMERLY FELLOW OF PEMBROKE

COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE,

NUMBERS— DEUTERONOMY.

5econD lEtition.

LONDON :
J. HATCHARD AND SON, 187, PICCADILLY

MDCCCXLIV,

LONDON :

rniMEn bv g. j, palmer, savoy street, strand.

FAMILY EXPOSITION

THE PENTATEUCH.

THE FOURTH BOOK OF MOSES, CALLED NUMBERS.

Before Christ, 1490.

EXPOSITION I.

Numbers i. 1 — 46.

1. And the Lord spake unto Moses in the wilderness
of Sinai, in the tabernacle of the congregation on the
first day of the second month, in the second year after

they were come oiit of the land of Egypt, saying,

2. Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the
children of Israel, after their families, by the house of
their fathers, with the number of their names, every
male by their polls ;

3. Frotn twenty years old and uptvard, all that are
able to go forth to war in Israel : thou and Aaron shall
number them by their armies.

B

2 NUMBERS I. 1— IG.

4. And ivith you there shall he a man of every tribe ,-
every one head of the house of his fathers.

Such is the commencement of the fourth book
of Moses, called Numbers. It is so named, like
the three preceding books, in reference to its
contents, since two accounts are handed down
in it of the numbering of the children of Israel.
The former of these, as we learn from the pas-
sage we have just read, records the census that
was taken in the second year of the wanderings
of the Israelites in the wilderness ; and the
latter, as we shall afterwards find, in the twenty-
sixth chapter, that which occurred in the last
year, thirty-nine years afterwards.

There was comparatively but slight difference
in the two amounts, the second containing about
eighteen hundred fewer persons than that of
which we are now reading, but both exceeding
six hundred thousand fighting men, besides
women and children. For, after recording how
many of each tribe were numbered, we read;
[Here may he read from verse 5. to 43 inclusive J\-

44. These are those that were numbered, which
Moses and Aaron numbered, and the princes of Israel,
being twelve men : each one was for the house of his

fathers.

45. So were all those that tvere nutnbo-ed of the
cJdldren of Israel, by the house of their fathers, from

NUMBERS I. 1—46. 3

twenty years old and upward, all that xoere able to go
forth to loar in Israel ;

46. Even all they that were numbered were six hun-
dred thousand and three thousand and Jive hundred and

fifty-

A most prodigious increase of Abraham's little
progeny, and a wonderful completion of one of
the most remarkable of God's promises, that
the patriarch's seed should be " as the sand on
the sea shore, and as the stars of heaven for mul-
titude."

But there is a solemn fact connected with
this generation, to which we would not omit
all reference even here, and with which some
of the most interesting portions of the book
upon which we are entering, will be found
connected. None were counted in this number-
ing, unless they were turned of twenty years,
having therefore passed the dangers and sick-
nesses of childhood, and possessing every pros-
pect of arriving at a good old age : yet with the
exception of two individuals, all this generation,
this immense multitude, for there were, as we
have seen, more than six hundred thousand men,
besides women and children, was cut off during
the forty years that followed.

It is well thus, at the commencement of this
book, to impress upon our minds this great and

B 2

4 NUMBERS I. 1—46.

solemn fact; for astonished, as we cannot but
be, at the wonderful completion of God's pro-
mises to Abraham, in the increase of his descend-
ants, we cannot but be equally surprised to find
this unlooked-for, unexampled result. All this
vast multitude reared but to perish prematurely,
as man would express it, in the wilderness !
And whence was this ? A single word will an-
swer the inquiry, it was sin. Sin which has
always been the destroyer of our race, sin which
first nestled amidst the flowers of Eden, could
not be excluded from the sands of Sinai.

" With whom," says the apostle to the He-
brews,* " with whom was he (God) grieved forty
years ? was it not with them that had sinned,
whose carcases fell in the wilderness ? And to
whom sware he that they should not enter into
his rest, but to them that believed not ? So we
see that they could not enter in " because of unbe-
lief."

We shall have many ojjportunities, as we
proceed, of examining the nature as well as
the effects of this sin ; it is sufficient at pre-
sent, while struck with wonder at the almost
countless hosts, which, with but a very short
journey between them and the promised land,
were destined never to place a single foot with-
* Heb.iii. 17—19.

NUMBERS I. 1—46. 5

in its frontier, that we endeavour to profit by an
exclusion so remarkable, by a mortality so
uncommon.

Who can refrain from a secret prayer, that he
may benefit by the lesson ? Who will not strive
to avail himself of the apostle's caution ? " Let
us, therefore, fear, lest a promise being left us
of entering into his rest, any of you should seem
to come short of it."

We are all, like Israel, at this moment tra-
versing the dreary sands of the desert ; of us,
as of them, God has taken an account ; the
fighting men, the " good soldiers of Jesus Christ,"
are all numbered; " a promise," as we have just
seen, is left of entering into rest, a rest with
which the blessings of Canaan could not bear
a moment's competition. Shall any of us, who
have reason to hope that we are indeed enlisted
in that holy army, even " seem to come short
of it ?" May God forbid ! may He who has
given the promise, give grace and strength for
its attainment, and may we, on our part, never
draw back ; never hesitate in that warfare, until
we have fought the good fight, and kept the
faith, and finished the course, and for the alone
merits of our ever blessed Redeemer, entered
into the rest, and obtained the crown !

NUMBERS I. 47—51.

EXPOSITION II.

Numbers i, 47 — 54.

47. But the Levites after the tribe of their fathers
were not immhered among them.

48. For the Lord had spoken unto Moses, saying,

49. Only thou shalt not number the tribe of Levi,
neither take the sum of them among the children of
Israel ;

.50. But thou shalt appoint the Levites over the
tabernacle of testimony, and over all the vessels thereof,
and over all things that belong to it : they shall bear
the tabernacle, and all the vessels thereof : and they
shall minister unto it, and shall encamp round about
the tabernacle.

51. And when the tabernacle setteth forward, the
Levites shall take it down ; and when the tabernacle is
to be pitched, the Levites shall set it up : and the
stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.

We find, from these verses, that the Levites were
not to be numbered among the congregation of
Israel : the reason is obvious, they were to be
in an especial manner devoted to the service of
God and the tabernacle, and as they could not
swell the ranks of Israel, they were not to be
counted amono: the thousands of Israel.

NUMBERS I. 47—54. 7

Thus, in every dispensation, has it pleased God
to appoint an order of men, who should devote
themselves exclusively to spiritual services ; in
the old dispensation, to the tabernacle ; in the
new, to the altar.*

We find, therefore, our Lord himself in the
Gospels, and the apostles in the Acts and Epistles,
setting apart his ministers for their great and
important office ; and although under the " bet-
ter covenant," the extreme penalty attached to
any, the smallest interference with ministerial
duties, has been abrogated, and we are no
longer taught " that the stranger that cometh
nigh shall be put to death," there still can be
no question that the duties and privileges of the
Christian ministry, are of the most solemn and
awful nature ; instituted by our Lord himself,
and not without guilt to be intruded upon by
any who have not been " lawfully called, and
sent to execute " them. And lest there should
be the least doubt in our minds to what limits
this exclusion extends, our church most wisely
and warily adds, " And those we ought to judge
lawfully called and sent, which be chosen and
called to this work by men who have public au-
thority given them in the congregation, to call

* See Heb. xiii. 10.

8 NUMBERS I. 47-54.

and send ministers into the Lord's vineyard." *
We do not hesitate to say, that none but men
so called, and so sent, can rightly exercise the
ministei'ial functions ; and every holy and de-
voted servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, who is
so called and so sent, whether, as in our own
apostolical church, by the authority of the
bishops, or in the Scotch, on non-conforming, or
continental churches, " by the laying on of the
hands of the presbytery," is acknowledged by our
church herself, in the Article we have just quoted,
to be an accredited minister of the religion of
our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

52. And the children of Israel shall pitch their tents,
every man by his own camp, and every man by his own
standard, throughout their hosts.

53. But the Levites shall pitch round about the
tabernacle of testimony, that there be no xorath upon
the congregation of the children of Israel : and the
Levites shall keep the charge of the tabernacle of testi-
mony.

54. And the children of Israel did according to all
that the Lord commanded Moses, so did they.

The Levites, therefore, were always to be close
to their work, always dwelling near to the
tabernacle, that no time might be lost going to
and fro ; that whether on the march, or at the

* See Church of England Articles, No. xxiii.

NUMBERS I. 47—54. 9

halt, the important charge committed to them
might never be for one moment out of sight, or
out of mind. How important is every such les-
son to the Christian ! How earnest, how anxious,
how watchful ought we to be, who have been so
unspeakably honoured, as to have been made,
by the transforming power of the Holy Spirit,
" kings and priests unto our God," that we be
daily living in the closest communion with the
true ark of the covenant, the Lord Jesus Christ.
While every other Israelite " pitched his tent
by his own camp, and every man by his own
standard, throughout their hosts," the Levite
alone never forsook the centre of all his duties,
and all his glory. Let, then, nothing induce
U3 to wander ; let us feel more and more, that it
is only while enjoying the closest communion
with our glorified Head, while drawing out of
his fulness, grace for grace, that we can be
either useful, or safe, or happy. Let the world
retire to its own camp, and sit down beneath its
own standard, but let the true child of God
always remember that the " angel of the Lord,"
even the uncreated angel, " encampeth round
about them that fear him," * and that " his banner
over them is love." f

* Ps.xxxiv 7- t Cant. ii. 4.

B 5

JO NUMBERS IX. 1— H.

EXPOSITION III.

\^Here may be read from chapter ii. to cliapter
viii. inclusive.^

Numbers ix. 1 — 14.

1. And the Lord spake unto Moses in the wilderness
of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they
were come out of the land of Egypt, saying,

2. Let the children of Israel also keejj the passover
at his appointed season.

3. In the fourteenth day of this month, at even, ye
shall keep it in his appointed season : according to all
the rites of it, and according to all the ceremonies
thereof, shall ye keep it.

When we were reading of the original institu-
tion of the passover in the book of Exodus, we
were expressly informed that this important ser-
vice was not intended for the Israelites, during
their journeyings in the wilderness, but after their
settlement in Canaan. For we are told, " And
it shall come to pass, When ye be come to the
land which the Lord will give you, according
as he hath promised, that ye shall keep this

NUMBERS IX. 1—14. 11

service." ^ It is not surprising, therefore, that
the Israelites required a renewed order before
they thoug-ht of solemnising this feast in the
desert of Sinai. It was the only time, during-
the forty years of their wanderings, that it was
so celebrated ; and whence was this exception,
we know not, for we are not informed ; but
probably, in mercy to the generation that was
to be swept away without ever beholding the
promised land, the Almighty permitted them,
on the first anniversary of their wonderful de-
liverance, thus to be partakers of the blessings
of this holy institution. That these blessings
were highly valued by the congregation of
Israel, is sufficiently evident, from what imme-
diately follows.

4. And Moses spake unto the children of Israel, that
they should keep the passover.

5. And they kejit the passover on the fourteenth day
of the first month at even in the loilderness of Sinai ;
according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so
did the children of Israel.

6. And there were certain men who ivere defiled by
the dead body of a man, that they coidd not keep the
passover on that day : and they came before Moses
and before Aaron on that day :

/. And those men said unto him. We are defiled by
the dead body of a man : wherefore are we kept back,
* Exodus xii. 25.

12 NUMBERS IX. 1-14.

that we may not offer an offering of the Lord in his
appointed season amony the children of Israel ?

This was a most natural inquiry for a sincere
and pious Israelite. The law, as recorded in
Leviticus,"* had determined, that whosoever ate
of the flesh of a sacrifice, while in a state of
uncleanness, should be cut " off" from his people,"
and yet the dead must be buried, and the pas-
sover be eaten, upon pain of death. What then
was to be done? Moses, with true wisdom, de-
termines upon going to the Fountain of all
wisdom.

8. And Moses said unto them. Stand still, and I will
hear what the Lord will command concerning you.

9. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

10. Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If
any man of you or of your posterity shall he unclean by
reason of a dead body, or be in a journey afar off, yet
he shall keep the passover unto the Lord.

11. The fourteenth day of the second mx)iith at even
they shall keep it, and eat it with unleavened bread
and bitter herbs.

12. They shall leave none of it unto the morning, nor
break any bone of it : according to all the ordinances of
the passover they shall keep it.

13. But the man that is clean, and is not in a journey,
and forbeareth to keep the passover, even the same soul
shall be cut off from among his people : because he

* Leviticus vii. 20.

NUMBERS IX. 1—14. 13

brovght not the offering of the Lord in his appointed
season, that man shall bear his sin.

14. And if a stranger shall sojourn among you, and
will keep the passover unto the Lord ; according to the
ordinance of the passover, and according to the manner
thereof, so shall he do : ye shall have one ordinance both
for the stranger, and for him that was born in the land.

All, therefore, were to partake of the passover,
but the temporarily unclean were to eat of it " in
the second month," giving them, therefore, ample
time for cleansing " according to the preparation
of the sanctuary."

What a useful suggestion may we not derive
from this, as regards the Christian passover, the
Lord's Supper ! Is the difficulty presented tons,
which so often disturbs the mind of the young-
Christian? to partake is an absolute, a positive
duty, as plain as that of the Israelite's attend-
ance at his Paschal feast. But to partake of
the Lord's Supper in an unfit and unclean state,
is obviously as positive a sin. May I then neg-
lect the ordinance ? This must not, cannot be.
AVhat, then, is the alternative ? Instead of com-
plaining that you are unclean, go at once to Him
vtho invites the unclean, yea, the very dwellers
in the highways and hedges, to his wedding-feast.
It is in that character, if you really abhor your
uncleanness, if you hate your sins, if you desire

14 NUMBERS IX. 15—23.

nothing so much as his cleansing blood and
justifying righteousness, that you will be indeed
a welcome guest. Go first, humbly and faith-
fully, to the Lord of the Supper, for cleansing,
and then go boldly and thankfully to the Supper
of the Lord, for refreshment and strength. You
may, like the unclean Israelite, be late, but so
coming, you will be in time, and so feeding by
faith upon the body and blood of the Saviour,
you will receive " the strengthening and refresh-
ing of your soul."

EXPOSITION IV.

Numbers ix. 15 — 23.

15. And on the day that the tabernacle was reared
vj), the cloud covered the tabernacle, namely, the te^it
of the testimony : and at even there teas ujwti the
tabernacle as it loere the appearance of fire, until the
morning.

16, Bo it loas alway : the cloud covered it by day,
and the appearance of fire by night.

We read for the first time of this wonderful
provision of the Almighty, for the guidance and
comfort of his chosen people, in the thirteenth

NUMBERS IX. 15-23. 15

chapter of Exodus, where we were told that
" the Lord went before them by day in a pillar
of cloud to lead them the way ; and by night in
a pillar of fire to give them light ; to go by day
and night." We hear that, at the completion *
of the tabernacle, the pillar of fire and cloud
took up its position on the sacred tent, and
never thence removed, except as a signal for the
departure or halting of the Israelites. Its con-
tinual residence there, is again repeated in the
verses before us, and is often afterwards alluded
to, as if to mark the honour which it pleased
God thus to confer upon the tabernacle he had
pitched among men. Most important, in a re-
ligion so full of outward ordinances as the Jewish ;
and valuable, in all ages, as marking the honour
which the Almighty puts upon the religious
services of his own appointment, and therefore
the high degree of respect and veneration which
they demand from us. It is in the sanctuary
of God, that the presence of God may be said,
in a peculiar manner, to rest, and to fill it with
his glory ; and blessed is that soul which can feel,
without any mingling of superstition, but from
long and deep experience, with the holy psalmist,
" Lord, I have loved the habitation of thy house,
and the place where thine honour dwelleth."f
* Exodus xl. 34. t Psalm xxvi. 8.

16 NUMBERS IX. 1.0—23.

17. And when the cloud was taken up from the
tahernade, then after that the children of Israel jour-
neyed : and in the place where the cloud abode, there
the children of Israel pitched their tents.

18. At the commandment of the Lord the children
of Israel journeyed, and at the commandment of the
Lord they pitched : as long as the cloud abode upon
the tabernacle they rested in their tents.

19. And when the cloud tarried long upon the taber-
nacle many days, then the children of Israel kept the
charge of the Lord, and journeyed not.

20. And so it was, when the cloud was a few days
upon the tabernacle ; according to the commandment of
the Lord they abode in their tents, and according to
the commandment of the Lord they journeyed.

21. And so it was, tohen the cloud abode from even
unto the morning, and that the cloud was taken up in
the morning, then they journeyed : lohether it was by
day or by night that the cloud was taken up, they jour-
neyed.

22. Or whether it loere two days, or a month, or a
year, that the cloud tarried upon the tabernacle,
remaining thereon, the children of Israel abode in their
tents, and journeyed not : but when it was taken up,
they journeyed.

23. At the commandment of the Lord they rested in
the tents, and at the commandment of the Lord they

journeyed : they kept the charge of the Lord, at the
commandment of the Lord by the hand of Moses.

Very often is the obedience of the Israelites
to this divine and miraculous symbol, repeated

NUMBERS IX. 15—23. 17

in these verses. Perhaps, because few things
can be imagined more difficult, than, under their
peculiar circumstances, such implicit obedience
must have been ; perhaps, also, when we consider
how large a portion of the forty years they must
have been absolutely stationary, strongly to pro-
claim to us the importance of the truth so
beautifully expressed by our great poet,

" They also serve, who only stand and wait."

How painful must it have been to the Israelite,
full of energy and ardour, longing to be pressing
forward through the dangers and trials of the
wilderness, to the enjoyments of the promised
land, day after day to cast a wistful glance upon
the tabernacle, and see the cloud still stationary,
and week after week, and month after month, look
in vain for its removal ! How trying is it often-
times to the Christian minister, to be desirous, like
the Israelite, of partaking of the toils and labours,
themselves the pleasures and joys of the journey,
and yet to be held back by providential hin-
drances, from all participation in them! How
still more trying to the advanced and aged Chris-
tian, who can say with the apostle, " I am now
ready to be offered and the time of my departure
is at hand ;" and who can feel with that same
apostle, " that he had rather depart and be with

18 NUMBERS X. 11—32.

Christ," still to be called upon to linger in this
house of clay, still to stand in watchfulness and
prayer for the moving of the pillar !

What a much larger measure of grace does it
require under almost every circumstance to wait
for God than to work for God ! And yet, how-
ever laudable be our zeal, there are times in
which patience is more laudable ; and the highest
attainment of the most active, ardent, indefa-
tigable Christian will be found in simple waiting
for God, and ui)on God, until the pillar of fire
and cloud shall once more beckon him onward,
or upward. Happy, indeed, is he who, during
the trying and tedious interval, has learnt to say
from his heart,

" Sweet to lie passive in God's hands
And know no will but his."

EXPOSITION V.

[Here may he read the ten first verses of chap, x.]

Numbers x. 11 — 32.

1 1. And it came to pass on the twentieth day of the
second month, in the second year, that the cloud was
taken up from off the tabernacle of the testimony.

NUMBERS X. 11—32. 19

12. And the children of Israel took their journeys
out of the ivilderness of Sinai : and the cloud rested
in the wilderness of Par an.

The Israelites had now been encamped, for
about a twelvemonth, before Mount Sinai, and
as we read, in the last chapter, that all the con-
gregation were to partake of the passover in the
first month of the second year, while the unclean
were to wait until the sixteenth day of the second
month, it seems as if the time for the breaking
up of the encampment was appointed with a
mei'ciful reference to these latter, that none
might be excluded from the grand festival, and
that the armies of Israel should not march, until
all were able to join them. Greatly, no doubt,
had the Israelites longed for this removal, and
yet, after all, it was only from wilderness to
wilderness — from Sinai to Paran ; nothing better
could they expect, and nothing better shall we
ever find, in the removes of earth. An exchange
of evils is the utmost we can hope for, until we
reach the land from which evil is excluded.

[Here may be read from verse 13, to verse 28,
inclusive.}

29. And Moses said unto Hobab, the son of Raguel
the Midianite, Moses^ father-in-law, We are journeying
unto the place of which the Lord said, I ivill give it

20 NUMBERS X. 11—32.

you : come thou with us, and we will do thee good : for
the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel.

30. And he said xinto him, I tvill not go ; but I will
depart to mine own land, and to my kindred.

Observe, here, the kindness and family affec-
tion manifested by Moses. How striking is it,
that there is scarcely a patriarch or a prophet,
of whose family any mention whatever is made
who does not supply us with some beautiful
instance of this christian grace. Moses, although
" reigning as a king in Jeshurum," feels as
deeply interested in the welfare of his brother-in-
law, as if he had none beyond his own little
circle to care for. " Come thou with us and we
will do thee good," are the words of his affec-
tionate entreaty. Hobab rejects it, upon the
strong plea of his ties and of his kindred in his
native land. But Moses, like a man deeply in
earnest for the spiritual and temporal advan-
tages of his relative, for we cannot doubt that
both were included, thus continues.

31. And he said, Leave us not, I pray thee ; foras-
m,uch as thou knoivest how we are to encamp in the
wilderness, and thou mayest be to us instead of eyes.

32. And it shall be, if thou go with us, yea, it shall
be, that what goodness the Lord shall do \mto us, the
same will we do unto thee.

It is evident, that Moses could have no need

NUMBERS X. 11-32. 21

of Hobab to act as eyes to the Israelites to point
out when they should encamp and when they
should march, for all this, as we have seen, was
to be determined by the Almighty himself. The
view, therefore, which Calvin takes of the passage
is probably the true one ; " Leave us not, I pray
thee, but come and share with us in the promised
land, for, therefore, hast thou known our en-
campment in the wilderness, 'and hast been to
us instead of eyes ; and we cannot make thee
amends for sharing with us in our hardships,
unless thou go with us to Canaan."

At any rate, it is evident that Moses was not
repulsed by a first refusal, and there is reason to
believe, although it is not recorded, that this
second appeal was successful, for we find the Ke-
nites, the descendants of Hobab, mentioned in the
book of Judges as dwelling among the people.*

Is it possible to read such an incident, without
a deep feeling of humiliation and self-condemna-
tion ? Was Moses so earnest, so resolute, so
strongly bent upon carrying with him all, over
whom he possessed the slightest influence, or
to whom he was in any degree united in the
bonds of affection and relationship, to the pro-
mised land ? And how have we felt, how do we
feel, who also hope that " we are journeying to
* Judges i. 16.

22 NUMBERS X. 11—32.

the land of which the Lord has said, I will give
it thee ?" Alas ! how few are there, thus ear-
nestly, thus zealously affected ! How few who
resolve, I will not leave a relative whom I love,
a friend whom I regard, without at least endea-
vouring, by God's help, to impress upon them
the invitation, " Come thou with us and we will
do thee good." And yet this is the true nature
and character of real religion. No sooner was
one disciple converted to the faith, than his heart
burned within him, until he had brought his
brethren and his kinsmen to Jesus. No sooner
was Andrew converted, than " he first findeth
his own brother Simon * * * and brought him
to Jesus." No sooner was Philip converted,
than he " findeth Nathanael," and " saith unto
him, Come and see." Thus it has ever been,
thus it must ever be, where the true light of
the Gospel has illumined the eyes, and the true
love of the Gospel has taken possession of the
heart. Most zealous, then, let us be in this
great work; have we no relative, no friend, no
companion whom we can, by God's grace, per-
suade to accompany us to the promised land ?
If we have yet induced no one to listen, no one
to follow, we fear it is more from want of zeal,
than of subjects ; more because we estimate the
good land too lightly, than because none will

NUMBERS X. 33—36. 23

liear and accept the invitation. Yet is this a
paramount christian duty, as well as a high
christian enjoyment, for remember the words of
the Apocalypse, " The Spirit and the Bride say,
Come, and let him that heareth say, Come, and
whosoever will, let him take of the water of
life freely."

EXPOSITION VI.
Numbers x. 33—36.

33. And they departed from the mount of the Lord
three days' journey : and the ark of the covenant of
the Lord went before them in the three days' journey,
to search out a resting-place for them.

34. And the cloud of the Lord was ujjon them by day,
when they went out of the camp.

Here was the fulfilment of the declaration in
a former chapter, that the journeys of the Is-
raelites should be thus directed, and their rest-
ing-places thus miraculously and wonderfully
pointed out. The Sheckinah, or divine glory of
the Lord which accompanied the ark, " searched
out," — for so the Holy Spirit has condescended

7

24 NUMBERS X. 33—30.

to express it — a " resting-place for them." What
should we have thought of any careless, or ob-
stinate, or self-willed Israelite, who, notwith-
standing this parental care on the part of his
heavenly Father, had preferred, at the close of
a long day's march, to choose his own situation
for halting? had turned with indifference from
what God had provided, and had resolved to seek
a " resting-place," where his own fancy, or his
own wilfulness suggested ? Should we have been
surprised if that soul had been cut off from the
congregation ? We think not. Yet how similar
is the conduct of many among ourselves ! How
often have we all felt a strong, a rebellious in-
clination to prefer in spiritual things, a resting-
place of our own selection, to that which the
love and mercy of our God has provided ! We
desire peace of mind, for instance, and we seek
it in the fulfilment of duties — in the more rig-id
and exact attendance upon church ordinances —
in the consciousness of our integrity, our up-
rightness, our charities ; in short, in anything,
or in everything, rather than in Christ. Yet is
He the only resting-place, which the Spirit of
God has found for us in a toilsome and trouble-
some world. Out of Him, all is uncertainty and
disquietude and doubt ; in Him, and in Him
alone, there is peace. Blessed is that soul, which

10

NUMBERS X, 33—36. 25

having- been led by the influence of the Spirit of
God, to cast itself unreservedly upon him for
" wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification,
and redemption," is thus enabled experimentally
to realise the comforting declaration of the pro-
phet, " The work of righteousness shall be peace,
and the effect of righteousness, quietness and
assurance for ever." *

35. And it came to pass, when the ark set forward,
that Moses said. Rise uj), Lord, and let thine enemies
he scattered : and let them that hate thee flee before
thee.

36. And when it rested, he said. Return, O Lord,
unto the many thousands of Israel.

How delightful must it have been to every
true Israelite, thus to repose, as it were, under
the shadow of the Almighty — thus to realise his
immediate presence among them, whether by
day or by night. When commencing, in the
morning, the perilous journey of the day, to
behold, almost with the eye of sense, their Divine
Leader arising like a giant to run his course.
When encamping for the night, after the labours
of the day were concluded, again to bear the solemn
invitation — again to see the lambent flame re-oc-
cupying its place upon the ark of testimony, and
the God of the ark return, as it were, to dwell
among them ! " Happy are the people who are
* Isaiah xxxii. 17.

C

26 NUMBERS X. 33—36.

in such a case, yea, blessed are the people who
liave the Lord for their God !"

We see and acknowledge at once the happi-
ness of such a dispensation, and yet who can
doubt, that the privileges and the blessings under
which we live are infinitely greater? Listen
only to our Lord's own most gracious words, and
hear him manifesting himself to every true be-
liever, as he does not unto the world. " If a
man love me he will keep my words, and my
Father will love him, and we will come unto
him, and make our abode with him." And
again, " Behold, I stand at the door and knock :
if any man hear my voice and open the door, I
will come in to him, and will sup with him, and
he with me." Let us then endeavour, daily and
hourly, to reap the fulfilment of these blessed
promises. Why should not every child of God
feel himself as immediately, as continually in the
enjoyment of the felt presence of the Almighty,
as the thousands of Israel? " Draw nigh unto
God and he will draw nigh unto you," are his
own most gracious words. Endeavour not only
to begin and to end the day with God, but to
pass every hour of it as in his company, within
the ken of his all-seeing eye, and the hearing of
his all-hearing ear. What purity, what holi-
ness, what happiness will be ours, if we prayer-

NUMBERS XI. 1—9. 27

fully and consistently make the attempt, thus
like Enoch, to walk with God, thus like the
patriarchs of old, to live " as seeing him who is
invisible." Under such guidance, and in such
companionship, every mile of the journey will
be rendered safe, even when it cannot be plea-
sant ; and the weakest pilgrim travelling thus,
may be permitted to say, " This God is our God
for ever and ever, he will be our guide even unto
death."

EXPOSITION VII.

Numbers xi. 1 — 9.

1. And when the people complained, it displeased
the Lord : and the Lord heard it, and his anger loas
kindled ; and the fire of the Lord burnt among them,
and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of
the camp.

2. And the people cried unto Moses; and when
Moses prayed unto the Lord, the fire was quenched.

3. And he called the name of the place Taherah :
because the fire of the Lord burnt among them.

Continually, during the long and painful so-
journ of the Israelites in the wilderness, do we

c2

28 NUMBERS XI. 1—9.

find them exciting;, by their murmurs, the just
anger of their Almighty Leader, and suffering
the most fearful and desolating judgments. On
the present occasion, it has not pleased God
to inform us of the subject of those murmurs, or
to afford us the least clue by which to ascertain
it.

The inspired word simply says, " the people
complained," and proceeds to record God's anger
and his punishment. Perhaps the reason that
the Almighty has not revealed to us the subject
of the people's murmurings, is to caution us more
strongly against all murmurings, and to show,
whatever be the cause, whether great or small,
that they are equally contrary to the Divine will,
and obnoxious to the Divine wrath.

There is something very simple, and at the
same time very solemn, in the language, " The
Lord heard it !" Would that we could bear this
perpetually in mind. The phrase is used on
another occasion in the inspired writings, when
we are told by the Prophet Malachi, " Then
they that feared the Lord spake often one to
another, and the Lord hearkened and heard it."
Yes, all is heard by God— the holy communica-
tions of the devout, and the ungrateful repinings
of the murmurer. When we are indulging in
familiar conversation, in captious observations

8

NUMBERS XI. 1—9. 29

upon the little events of life, how apt are we to
fall into a complaining strain, dissatisfied too
often with our situations, with the accommoda-
tions by which we are surrounded, with the
persons with whom we have to do, with the busi-
ness, or even the weather. Complaining is so much
the habitual employment of some minds, that they
hardl} seem to feel that " the Lord hears it ;" and
that these may be among the " idle words " of which
" they shall give account in the day of judgment."
What a lesson upon far more topics than the one
referred to, might all such persons learn from the
answer of the well-known " Shepherd of Salis-
bury Plain." When asked. What weather are
we likely to have ? he replied, " It will be what
pleases me." " How so?" rejoined the inquirer.
" Because," said the shepherd, " it will be what
pleases God, and what pleases God shall jilease
me." Few would be the complaints of the
Christian if this feeling reigned in his heart :
very rare indeed are the repinings, where
God's will is our will, and God's pleasure our
pleasure.

4. And the mixt multitude that was among them fell
a lusting : and the children of Israel also wept again,
and said, icho shall give us flesh to eat ?

5. We remember the fish which we did eat in Egypt
freely ; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks,

and the onions, and the garlick :

30 NUMBERS XI. 1— <J.

G. But noio our soul is dried aioay : there is nothing
at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.

7 . And the manna was as coriander seed, and the
colour thereof as the colour of bdellium.

8. And the people iveiit about, and gathered it, and
ground it in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it
in pans, and made cakes of it : and the taste of it was
as the taste of fresh oil.

9. And when the dew fell upon the camp in the night
the manna fell ujjon it.

This description of the manna is almost a re-
petition of that which we ah'eady possessed in
the book of Exodus,* and is here only introduced
parenthetically, in the midst of this fresh out-
break of the children of Israel. No sooner, it
appears, had Moses deprecated the wrath of
God, and by his intercession turned aside his
just anger from this complaining people, than
they found a new source of disquietude, in the
absence of those luxuries which they had enjoyed
in Egypt. On this occasion, it would seem, that
" the mixed multitude " who accompanied the
Israelites were the instigators of their dissatis-
faction. Thei/ first " fell a lusting," and painful
is it to observe how speedily the people of God
were seduced by this evil example. How dan-
gerous, at all times, is a close association be-

* See Exodus xvi. 14, and 31.

NUMBERS XL 1—9. 31

tween the two great families of light and dark-
ness ! There is so strong a natural tendency,
even in the renewed heart, to all that is evil ;
more especially, so undying a desire for the plea-
sures of time and sense, that seldom, indeed, do
the godly mix closely and frequently with the un-
godly, without suffering greatly from the contact.
Exclusiveness must form a feature in all true
religion, and while ready to mingle, so far as
our worldly duties and worldly relationships
require it, with " the mixed multitude " that
have never formed a real portion of the Church
of the Redeemer, we must, if we value our peace
of mind, yea, even our soul's health and our
soul's salvation, avoid all unnecessary intimacies,
all travelling in company. It is scarcely possible
to walk with those who know not God, and yet
keep God as our companion. It is hardly within
the power of mortality to come from near and
intimate communion Avith those, whose delight
is in the flesh-pots of Egypt, and yet bring to
the throne of God's mercy-seat a heart burning
with love towards himself, and desires for the
spiritual blessings of Canaan.

32 NUMBERS XI. 10—20.

EXPOSITION VIII.

Numbers xi. 10 — 20.

10. Then Moses heard the people weep throughout
their families, every man in the door of his tent : and
the anger of the Lord was kindled greatly ; Moses also
was displeased.

1 1 . And Moses said unto the Lord, Wherefore hast
thou afflicted thy servant ? and wherefore have I not

found favour in thy sight, that thou layest the burden
of all this people upon me ?

12. Have I conceived all this people ? have I he-
gotten them, that thou shoiddest say unto me. Carry
them in thy bosom (as a nursing father beareth the
sucking child) unto the land ivhich thou swarest unto
their fathers ?

13. Whence shoidd I have flesh to give unto all this
people ? for they weep unto me, saying. Give us flesh,
that we may eat.

14. I am not able to bear all this people alone, be-
cause it is too heavy for me.

15. And if thou deal thus with me, Jdll me, I pray
thee, out of hand, if I have found favour in thy sight :
and let me not see my wretchedness.

We can hardly imagine that this is the lan-
guage of Moses, who is declared by the Spirit of
God, to have been " very meek above all the
men upon the face of the earth ;" such a mixture
* Numbers xii. 3.

NUMBERS XI. 10—20. 33

of repining and despair ! and must we not add,
of self-exaltation and natural vanity, are in these
words? Does he not speak, as if all the neces-
sities of this immense multitude rested upon
hi7n, rather than upon God ? As if he were to
carry the people, and he were to lead them into
the promised land, and he were to find them
flesh to eat ? There is something almost arro-
gant in the inquiry, " Whence should I have
flesh to give unto all this people V Why, whence
had he water ? Whence had he manna ? Would
not the reply to these two inquiries have supplied
a most satisfactory answer to the third ? Surely,
as the father of the faithful erred from want of
faith, and Job from the want of patience, and
the man after God's own heart from want of
purity, so did the meekest man here sin on the
side of arrogance and self-sufficiency ; the very
feeling of his incompetency expressing itself in
the language of pride ! What a singular mixture
of deceit and hypocrisy is the human heart !
who can fathom the depths of its guilt — who
can trace the mazes of its duplicity? Striving,
as we all ought, steadily and prayerfully by the
aid of God's good Spirit against the approach
of every, the smallest dereliction of duty, let us
be more especially on our guard against those
sins, which are the most opposed to our peculiar

c 5

34 NUMBERS XI. 10—20.

graces, and from whicli, therefore, we may be
inclined to think we have the least to fear. In
them we shall generally find our greatest snares,
and nothing but the most careful course of Chris-
tian circumspection, guided and directed by the
Holy Spirit, can lead us in safety through them.
In the instance before us, great had been the
provocation of Moses, and more than propor-
tionately great, were the consideration and for-
bearance of our God. For continuing the nar-
rative we read,

16. And the Lord said unto Moses, Gather unto
me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou
Jcnowest to be the elders of the j)eople, and officers over
them ; and bring them unto the tabernacle of the con-
gregation, that they may stand there with thee.

1 7. And I will come down and talk with thee there ;
and I. will take of the spirit which is upon thee, and will
put it upon them ; and they shall bear the burden of
the j)coph with thee, that thou bear it not thyself
alone.

18. And say thou unto the people. Sanctify your-
selves against to-morrow, and ye shall eat flesh : for
ye have wept in the ears of the Lord, saying, Who
shall give us flesh to eat ? for it was well with us in
Egypt : therefore the Lord will give you flesh, and ye
shall eat.

19. Ye shall not eat one day, nor two days, nor five
days, neither ten days, nor twenty days ;

20. ^ut even a whole month, until it come out at

NUMBERS XL 10—20. 3o

your nostrils, and it be loathsome unto you ; because
that ye have despised the Lord ivhich is among you,
and have wept before him, saying. Why came we forth
out of Egypt ?

This was a fearful state of things. The Al-
mighty hears the complaining language of
Moses, and pardons and yields to it ; he hears
the repining cry of the Israelites, and yields to
it also ; but without pardoning it. Never are
we in so great danger, as when our prayers are
answered, but in judgment. Never are we so
near to ruin, as when God gives us the desire
of our hearts, those hearts remaining unsanctified.
How seldom should we venture to ask for earthly
blessings, if we only knew a thousandth part of
the perils by which they are usually accompanied.

We cannot conceive a lower picture of human
nature, than is presented to us by the earnest-
ness, the anxiety, the almost agony of this vast
multitude to obtain " flesh for their lusts;" and
yet probably to the angels who surround the
throne of God, there is little difference between
this, and the loftiest instance of ambition of the
proudest conqueror, whom the world has ever
cheered with its highest applauses. Let the
prayer of our hearts be. Lord, give me thyself.
With thee, the poorest pittance of earth is good
enough, and far too good for my deservings ;

36 NUMBERS XI. 21— 3U.

without thee, licaven itself would fall slioit of my
longing expectations.

EXPOSITION IX.
Numbers xi. 21 — 30.

21. And Moses said, The people, among whom I am,
are six hundred thousand footmen : and thou hast said,
I ivill give them flesh, that they may eat a whole month.

22. Shall the flocks and the herds be slain for them,
to suffice them ? or shall all the flsh of the sea he
gathered together for them, to suffice them ?

23. And the Lord said unto Moses, Is the Lord's
hand tvaxed short? thou shall see now whether my
word shall come to jiass unto thee or not.

How wonderful is the forbearance of our God !
How few even of earthly monarchs could have
borne such a questioning of their promises, such
a doubting of their power, and yet what are the
promises, what is the power of the highest of
created beings, when compared with the word
of him, who is " King of kings and Lord of
lords?" But behold this omnipotent Being passing-
over at once the misgivings of his faithless ser-
vant, with the single inquiry, " Is the Lord's hand
waxed short?" How mild and merciful a reproof!
How valuable and important a lesson ! Let

NUMBERS XI. 21—30. 37

us remember these words of our God, when
tempted, (as who has never been ?) to doubt his
mercy, or his power. There are moments when
even the renewed and established Christian is
so cast down by the perils or difficulties that
surround him, that he is tempted to exclaim,
Surely there is no hope, no deliverance : many
are the dangers which by God's grace I have
surmounted, but this I cannot escape. At such
times, ask yourself the question before you, " Is
the Lord's hand waxed short ?" How blessed
is the reply, " Behold, the Lord's hand is not
shortened, that it cannot save ; neither his ear
heavy, that it cannot hear." No change has
taken place in Him, who is " the unchange-
able ;" no alteration in Him, " with whom is no
variableness, neither shadow of turning." All
that is coming upon you is as well known to
him as all that is past, and he is at this moment
as able, as willing, nay, will assuredly as certainly
deliver you from the worst and latest of your
enemies, as he ever did from the first and feeblest
that crossed your path. Only, be not " of little
faith," but remembering what has been already
done for you, trust with the most implicit confi-
dence for all that remains, and you shall yet have
cause to praise him, who is the light of your
countenance and vour God.

38 NUMBERS XI. 21—30.

24. And Moses went out, and told the people the words
of the Lord, and gathered the seventij men of the elders
of the people, and set them round about the tabernacle.

2.5. And the Lord came doicn in a cloud, and spake
unto him, and took of the spnrit that was upon him,
and gave it unto the seventy elders : and it came to
pass, that, ivhen the sjnrit rested up>on them, they pro-
phesied, and did not cease.

26. But there remained two of the men in the camp,
the name of the one was Eldad, and the name of the
other Medad ; and the spirit rested upon them ; and
they were of them that were written, but went not out
unto the tabernacle : and they prophesied in the camp.

27. And there ran a young man, and told Moses,
and said, Eldad and Medad do prophesy in the camp.

28. And Joshua the son of Nun, the sei'vant of
Moses, one of his young men, answered and said. My
lord Moses, forbid them.

29. And Moses said unto him, Enviest thou for my
sake ? would God that all the Lord's people were pro-
phets, and that the Lord would put his spirit upon
them.

30. And Moses gat him into the camp, he and the
elders of Israel.

How delightful is it to behold Moses, that
true follower of Jehovah, thus, as it were, " come
to himself!" He had for a few moments been led
to repine; he had even been permitted to doubt the
love or the power of his divine Master ; but still
his heart was right with God, and however, for
the moment, tempted to speak unadvisedly with

NUMBERS XL 21—30. 39

his lips, however" his feet had well nigh slipped,"
he instantly, by God's grace, recovered his foot-
ing, and was once more on the Rock of ages,
realizing David's experience in after years,
" He restoreth my soul.*' * For no sooner did
Moses perceive that jealousy for his honour was
taking the place, in the hearts of those around
him, of the desire for God's glory, than he in-
dignantly repels the feeling ; " enviest thou
for my sake ? would God that all the Lord's
people were prophets." Here the true charac-
ter of Moses stands revealed, his very heart is
opened to us, and we find it like the heart of
every true child of God, full to overflowing of a
grateful love to that Being who first loved him.
He was willing to be as nothing, that God
might be everything, amidst the thousands of
Israel. "Whenever there is a true, a heartfelt
love to God in Christ Jesus, this also will be our
feeling ; " Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us,
but to thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and
for thy truth's sake." t

* Ps. xxiii. 3. t Ps. cxv. 1.

40 NUMBERS XI. 31—35.

EXPOSITION X.

Numbers xi. 31 — 35.

31. And there went forth a wind from the Lord,
and brought quails from the sea, and let them fall by
the camp, as it were a day's journey on this side, and
as it were a day's Journey on the other side, round about
the camp, and as it were two cubits high upon the face
of the earth.

32. And the people stood up all that day and all that
night, and all the next day, and they gathered the
quails ; he that gathered least gathered ten homers : and
they spread them all abroad for themselves round about
the camp.

This was a most stupendous miracle, wrought
to satisfy a murmuring and complaining people.
" They tempted God in their heart by asking
meat for their lust,"" * says the psalmist, and yet
they were not denied ; " He rained flesh upon
them as dust, and feathered fowl like the sand
of the sea." For a whole day's journey, pro-
bably ten miles, therefore making a circuit of
thirty miles in circumference around the camp,
the sands of the desert were covered, two cubits
deep, with the food the Israelites had longed
* Ps. lxx\aii. 18.

NUMBERS XL 31—35. 41

for ; so that he that gathered least had ten homers,
or as commentators explain it, ten " ass-loads,"
and the congregation of Israel were engaged
two whole days and one night in gathering
them. Surely they who had seen the many
thousands of Israel thus employed, would have
imagined, that they were, at that moment, high in
the favour of him who had so bountifully provided
for them. As he who saw the wicked " coming
in no misfortune like other folk," but " flourish-
ing like a green bay tree," fell into a similar
error. How careful should we be, to " judge
nothing before the time," neither the love of
God by the prosperity of the wicked, nor his
hatred of the good by their punishment.

Remember " the tower of Siloam," and be
very slow in establishing the guilt of the sufferer
by his sufferings, or his piety by his success.
The wise man, speaking by a wiser Spirit than
his own, has said, " No man knoweth either
love or hatred by all that is before them. All
things come alike to all, there is one event to
the righteous and to the wicked." * Let this
reflection teach us charity in judging of others,
always bearing in mind that God's love is not
shown by worldly success, nor his dislike by
worldly adversity.

* Eccles, i\. 1, 2.

42 NUMBERS XI. 31— 35.

33. And while the fiesh xoas yet hetiveen their teeth,
ere it was chewed, the wrath of the Lord was kindled
against the jJ^ojile, and the Lord s)note the peojjle v:ith
a very great jdague.

34. And he called the name of that place Kibroth-
hattaavah : because there they buried the people that
lusted.

35. And the people journeyed from Kibroth-hattaa-
vah unto Hazeroth ; and abode at Hazeroth.

Such was the conclusion of this memorable
incident, in the travels of the Israelites. The
Almighty, indeed, " gave them their heart's
desire, but he sent leanness withal into their
souls."

How suspiciously should we learn to look at
every temporal blessing, for which we are
tempted to long with a desire disproportioned
to its real value. This is often the method by
which Satan leads even good men into sin, he
teaches them to set their hearts upon some
imaginary worldly advantage, in itself, perhaps,
perfectly innocent, but rendered sinful by the
unbridled manner in which he tempts them to
long for it, to grasp at it, and perhaps, even un-
conditionally, to pray for it. It is not under
such circumstances always withheld. It is
granted, but in judgment, and sad is the hour,
which in these cases follows the possession. It
is well, if we do not suffer more than disappoint-

NUMBERS XI. 31—35. 43

ment. And yet, even here to God's own people,
there is usually much love mingled with the
judgment.

As it is with a wilful child to whom an affec-
tionate parent will sometimes give its own way,
and put it according to its desire, upon its feet, and
let it try to walk alone, though she cannot doubt
its falling, and therefore stands near enough to
see that no real injury shall happen to it, and
catches it almost before it can reach the ground ;
so is it often with the children of God. They
are far too earnest and impetuous, in the eager-
ness of their desires after this world's advantages,
they think they shall attain their object more
quickly by walking alone and helping themi-
selves, and their heavenly Father permits them
to do so, and places all they desire within their
reach. Does it add to their real happiness ?
does it promote their true enjoyment ? Alas !
the quails surfeited, but did not nourish,
Happy is it for those whom the first fall sends
back to their Father's arms ; happy is it when
they are thus taught to distrust their own powers,
and their own strength, and to rely simply on
the guiding, supporting arm of their heavenly
Father. Then, indeed, may present failure only
tend, through divine grace, to future stability
and success ; and the pardoned and accepted

44 NUMBERS XII. 1-16.

sinner be strengthened to run more safely than
before in the way of God's commandments.

EXPOSITION XL

Numbers xii. 1 — 16.

1 . And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses be-
cause of the Ethiojnan 'woman whom he had married :
for he had married an Ethiopian woman.

2. And they said. Hath the Lord indeed sj)oken only
by Moses ? hath he not spoken also by us ? And the
Lord heard it.

3. (Now the man Moses was very meek, above all
the men which were upon the face of the earth.)

Moses had lately suffered much from the in-
subordination and murmurings of the people ;
but he was yet to suffer more, and to find that
a man's worst foes, are sometimes those of his
own household. So long as he enjoyed domestic
peace and family union, he could bear unmoved
the taunts and complaints of the multitude.
But now the storm, which had hitherto been
assailing him only in the distance, burst, as it
were, over his own roof. His brother and his
sister envied his high position, and broke out

NUMBERS XII. 1—16. 45

into open rebellion, asserting, as it appears, their
perfect equality with him of whom they were
so unjustly jealous. What remarkable conduct
on the part of his relatives, who of all the con-
gregation, we should have expected, would, for
their own sakes, have gloried in his exaltation,
and rejoiced in his success.

We are not told, that Moses heard it, but we
are, as on a former occasion, very briefly, but
emphatically informed, that " the Lord heard
it." Yes, the Lord hears many an unkind
speech, an unjust accusation, a defamatory word,
which our neighbour never hears, or hearing,
has, like Moses, the grace and patience to dis-
regard. There are many such words spoken
in the servant's hall, that never reach the drav.-
ing-roora, and yet ascend to the ears of the
Lord God of Sabaoth. How useful to all of us,
then, is that prayer of the psalmist, '' Set a
watch, O Lord, before my mouth, and keep the
door of my lips!"*

4. And the Lord spake suddenly unto Moses, and
vnto Aaron, and unto Miriam, Come out ye three unto
the tabernacle of the congregation. And they three
came out.

5. And the Lord came doion in the pillar of the cloud,
and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called
Aaron and Miriam : and they both came forth.

* Ps. cxli. 3.

46 NUMBERS XII. 1— 16.

6. And he said, Hear now my loords : If there he n
prophet umong you, I the Lord will make myself known
unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a
dream.

7. My servant Moses is riot so, who is faithful in
all mine house.

8. With him tail I I sjieu/c mouth to mouth, even ap-
parently, and not in dark speeches ; and the similitude
of the Lord shall he behold : wherefore then loere ye
not afraid to speak against my servant Moses ?

9. And the anger of the Lord ivas kindled against
them ; and he departed.

This was indeed putting- a hioli honour upon
Moses, and marking a vast distinction between
him and every other prophet who should suc-
ceed him. With Moses the Ahuighty would
speak, not in dark speeches, but openly, and
mouth to mouth. Perhaps, that in this, as well
as in the contempt of his brethren after the flesh,
he might be a still plainer type of our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ, Observe, also, from this
remarkable passage of scripture, how strongly
does the Lord appear to feel every insult offered
to his faithful servants ! " Were ye not afraid
to speak against my servant Moses?" is the
indignant inquiry of Jehovah. " Saul, Saul, why
persecutest thou me ?" was the solemn and affect-
ing question asked, in after ages, by our Lord,
of him who was engaged in the destruction of

NUMBERS XII. 1—16. 47

that Lord's faithful followers. " He that touch-
eth you toucheth the apple of his eye,"* is the
striking expression of the Almighty by the
mouth of his prophet Zechariah, How great,
then, is the security, how strong the consolation
of every servant of God, when suffering from the
slanders of earth : " his record is on high." Let
him commit his soul in well-being, as unto a
gracious Creator, and intrust it to him to judge
and defend his cause.

But though on the present occasion, " the
Lord departed," he did not do so without leav-
ing visible marks of his displeasure, for we read,

10. And the cloud departed from off the tabernacle ;
and, behold, Miriam became leprous, white as siww :
and Aaron looked upon Miriam, and, behold, she was
leprous.

1 1 . And Aaron said unto Moses, Alas, my Lord,
I beseech thee, lay not this sin upon us, ivherein we
have done foolishly, and wherein we have sinned.

12. Let her not be as one dead, of whom the flesh
is half consuined when he cometh out of his mother's
womb.

13. And Moses cried unto the Lord, saying, Heal
her note, O God, I beseech thee.

14. And the Lord said unto Moses, If her father had
but spit in her face, shoxdd she not be ashamed seven
days ? let her be shut out from the camp seven days, and
after that let her be received in again.

* Zech. ii. 8.

6

48 NUMBERS XIII. 1—25.

15. And Miriam was shut out from the camp, seven
days : and the j)^ople journeyed not till Miriam was
brought in again.

16. And aftenvard the people removed from Ilaze-
roth, and ])itched in the wilderness of Paran.

Such was the punishment of one, at least, of
the guilty parties, public disgrace before the whole
cono-reofation of Israel. While to Aaron, whose
love to Moses we cannot question, notwithstand-
ing the gross ingratitude of the act in which we
find hina here engaged, perhaps it was a still
sorer punishment, to be pardoned a second time
at the intercession of his injured brother, and to
feel how utterly unworthy his own conduct had
been, both of their near and dear relationship,
and of the relative situations in which God had
placed them.

EXPOSITION XII.

Numbers xiii. 1 — 25.

1 . And the Lord spake u7ito Moses, saying,

2. Send thou men, that they may search the land of
Canaan, ichich I give unto the children of Israel : of
every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every
one a ruler among them.

NUMBERS XIII. 1—25. 49

3. And Moses by the commandment of the Lord sent
them from the ivilderness of Par an : all those men vjere
heads of the children of Israel.

The Israelites had now advanced close to the
borders of the promised land ; a little more faith,
a little more exertion, and all would have been
theirs ; but they hesitated at the very brink, and
their hesitation was their ruin. We find, from
the first chapter of Deuteronomy, that the idea
of sending spies into the land, before they ventured
in themselves, originated, not as we might imagine,
from the words before us, in the command of the
Almighty, but in the will of the people. They
said, when Moses desired them to " go up and
possess it," " We will send men before us and they
shall search out the land ;" and Moses adds, like
a faithful and candid historian, not desirous of
concealing his own mistakes, " And the saying
pleased me well.'' It is evident, from the chapter
before us, that the Almighty, probably having
been applied to, permitted it, and as we have
seen, the spies were sent.

[Sere may he read from verse 4, to verse 16,
inclusive.^

17. And Moses sent them to spy out the land of
Canaan, and said unto them. Get you uj) this way south-
ward, and go up into the mountain :

18. And see the land, what it is ; and the people that

D

50 NUMBERS XIII. 1—25.

dwelleth therein, whether they he strong or iL'eak,/eiv
or many ;

19. And what the land is that they dwell in, whether
it be good or bad; and lohat cities they be that they
dwell in, lohether in tents, or in strong holds ;

20. And what the land is, ivhether it be fat or lean,
whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of
good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now
the time ivas the time of the first ripe grapes.

21. So they went up, and searched the land from the
wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, as men come to Hamath.

22. And they ascended by the south, and came unto
Hebron ; where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the
children of Anak, were. {Now Hebron was built seven
years before Zoan in Egypt.)

23. And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and
cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes,
and they bare it between two upon a staff ; and they
brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs.

24. The place loas called the brook Eshcol, because of
the cluster of grapes which the children of Israel cut
down from thence.

25. And they returned from searching of the land
after forty days.

Such was the immediate result of the expedi-
tion ; forty days were spent in attempting to
discover, what had been already clearly revealed,
that the promised land was indeed " a land flowing
with milk and honey." And had this been all,
though we might have thought it a sad loss of
time at such a moment, it would have signified

8

NUMBERS XIII. 1—25. 51

little, compared with the disastrous events which
it occasioned. For the spies, as we shall after-
ward see, although fully persuaded of the good-
ness of the land, were at the same time, as fully
persuaded of the impossihility of attaining it,
and brought such a report of the difficulties of
the way, as to overthrow the faith and courage
of the whole congregation.

The incident will not be without its use, if it
teach us to trust God, rather than man. Had the
Israelites taken God at his word, and knowing that
what he had promised he would also surely perform,
marched boldly forward at the word of Moses,
and in the strength of the Almighty, all would
have been theirs ; and instead of forty years of
punishment in the wilderness, they would doubt-
less have enjoyed forty years of rest and happiness
in the promised land.

Has the Almighty revealed to any of our hearts
a knowledge of, and a desire after, that better
Canaan which he has offered, through the merits
of his dear Son, to all who will " receive the
Atonement," and strong in the strength, and
righteous in the righteousness of the Saviour,
walk holily, consistently, and faithfully, to take
possession? Then let none of us be tempted to
" take counsel of flesh and blood," let none of us
listen to those who would dwell upon the trials

D 2

52 NUMBERS XIII. 26—33.

and troubles and privation of the road, and would
induce us rather to idle through our little day in
the pursuits and pleasures of this wilderness-world,
than at once to set our face like a flint, and com-
mence upon our upward journey. Doubtless the
ascent is steep, and the path oftentimes rugged,
and the light sometimes obscure, but it is a '■'■pro-
mised land," to all the believing and obeying
servants of the Lord Jesus, and this to every
faithful, confiding pilgrim is abundantly sufficient.
He knows, and it is enough for time and for
eternity, that " He is faithful who has promised,"
and that though heaven and earth pass, one jot
or one tittle of his word shall in no wise pass
away, till all be fulfilled.

EXPOSITION xni.

Numbers xiii. 26 — 33.

26. And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron,
and to all the congregation of the children of Israel,
unto the ivilderness of Paran, to Kadesh ; and brought
back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and
shewed them the fruit of the land.

NUMBERS XIII. 26—33. 53

27. And they told him, and said. We came unto the
land lohither thou sentest us, and surely it jloweth with
milk and honey ; and this is the fruit of it.

28. Nevertheless the people be strong that dwell in
the land, and the cities are ivalled, and very great, and
moreover we saw the children of Anak there.

29. The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south :
and the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites,
dwell in the mountains : and the Canaanites dwell by
the sea, and by the coast of Jordan.

We here learn the continuation of the conduct
of the unfaithful spies, upon their return from
the land of Canaan. They acknowledge, indeed,
for they dared not deny it, that the land deserved
the character given to it by the Almighty, but
they dismiss its praises shortly and coldly, to dwell
on its dangers and difficulties. They do not at
first volunteer any opinion upon the possibility,
or the impossibility of the Israelites obtaining
possession, but they merely exaggerate the obsta-
cles, and leave this to work its natural effect in
the minds of the people.

We condemn the children of Israel, and rightly,
for being influenced by such representations, but
let us for a moment make the case our own, and
suppose our Lord to have said, " Strait is the
gate and narrow is the way, that leadeth to eternal
life, and few there be that find it," and never to
have added, " Him that coraeth unto me I will

54 NUMBERS XIII. 26—33.

in no wise cast out," how many among us would,
like the unfaithful Jews, have turned back and
walked no more with him ? How many of us
would have shrunk from difficulties which we
felt we possessed no power, either within us or
around us, to overcome ! Xay, may we not go
still further and ask, Are there none even at this
moment who are so appalled by the dangers of
the journey or the labours and self-denials of the
way, that they have not yet fairly set forth upon
the heavenly road, but are still waiting, in a state
of suspense, if not of absolute refusal, on this
great subject? If so, let them carefully observe
the conduct of one whose difficulties were as
great, and his promises of help not greater than
their own.

30. And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and
said, Let us go up at once, and possess it ; for ive are
well able to overcome it.

31. But the men that went up with him said. We be
not able to go vp against the people : for they are stronger
than we.

32. And they brought up an evil report of the land
which they had searched unto the children of Israel,
saying. The land, through which we have gone to search
it, is a land that eateth uji the inhabitants thereof;
and all the people that ive saw in it are men of a great
stature.

33. And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anah,

NUMBERS XIIL 26—33. 55

tchich come of the giants : and ice were in our men sight
■as grasshopperSy and so toe loere in their sight.

This was no doubt the language of exaggera-
tion, if not of absolute falsehood, and how strikingly
<loes it contrast with the words of him, who, with
the holy and devoted Joshua, was " faithful found
among the faithless." " We are well able to over-
come it," is the language of Caleb, nay more, as
if it were already overcome, " Let us go up at
once and possess it." Such in all ages is faith ;
and so truly is it, as the apostle defines it, " the
substance of things hoped for." Why did not
every Israelite feel with Caleb ? The psalmist
answers the inquiry, when speaking upon this
very subject, he says, " They despised the pleasant
land, they believed not his (the Lord's) word."*
This was the reason that they obeyed not ; they
believed not God's word ; tliey did not feel per-
fectly sure that he would fulfil his promise, and
make them the possessors of the land, and there-
fore they dared not risk the attempt. They
altogether mistook the nature of the undertak-
ing ; they did not see that it was not between
them and their enemies, but between God and
their enemies, that the fight was to be made ;
that the Lord was already engaged on their side,
and that warring in his strength they could not
* Ps. cvn. 24.

56 NUMBERS XIII. 2G— 33.

fail. Therefore they exchiiraed, " We be not able
to go up against the people, for they are stronger
than we." No doubt they were, and no doubt
a nation just emerging from the degradations of
a life of slavery might have expected to be de-
feated by a handful of free men. But this was
not the question for them to consider. It was
enough that God was with them, who then could
be successfully against them ?

So is it with the Christian; if he attempts the
warfare in his own strength, his efforts will be ut-
terly useless, hopelessly unavailing. " Without me
ye can do nothing," are the words of our Lord.
" I can do all things through Christ strengthening
me,*" is the confession of him who called himself
the very weakest of the apostles. And with this
declaration of the Saviour, and this faith of the
apostle, let the feeblest disciple go on his way,
" conquering and to conquer ;" let him turn his
back on no enemy, however powerful, let him
shrink from no danger, however appalling ; it is
enough that that Saviour, who cannot be beaten,
has undertaken for him and has said, " None
shall pluck them out of my Father's hand."

NUMBERS XIV. 1—9. 57

EXPOSITION XIV.

Numbers xiv. 1 — 9.

1 . And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and
cried ; and the people wept that night.

2. And all the children of Israel murmured against
Moses and against Aaron : and the ivhole congregation
said unto them. Would God that we had died in the
land of Egypt ! or would God we had died in this wil-
derness !

3. And wherefore hath the Lord brought us unto
this land, to fall hy the sword, that our wives and our
children should be a prey ? were it not better for us to
return into Egypt ?

4. Arid they said one to another. Let us make a cap-
tain, and let us return into Egypt.

We are here presented with the ruinous effect
of the report of the unfaithful spies upon the
hearts of a perverse and faithless generation. It
first produces despair and then rebellion. The
people wept all night, exclaiming, Would God
that we had died in the land of Egypt, and
then proceeded to open apostasy from their
Divine Ruler, " Let us make us a captain, and
let us return into Egypt." And yet these were
the men who had witnessed the great power and

D 5

58 NUMBERS XIV. 1—9.

mercy of Jehovah exerted in their behalf, in a
manner that no other people, either before or
since, have ever seen it. With what a picture
does it present us of the ingratitude and instability
of the human heart ! How little altered, alas !
at the present hour ! How often, when a religious
course has apparently been entered upon in
earnest, and even some little progress has been
made under our divine leader, do the cares or the
pleasures, or the fears of the world suddenly check
the advancing pilgrim, and persuade him to seek
another captain, and to turn back towards Egypt !
He has not, as our Lord advises, " first sat down
and counted the cost ;" he has not sufficiently
borne in mind, that, in every case, he who will
wear the crown must first bear the cross ; he has
not dwelt upon the deep and solemn importance
of those words of our Lord, " No man having put
his hand to the plough and looking back, is fit
for the kingdom of heaven." May we, each for
himself, pray rightly to estimate and duly to feel
the unspeakable danger of standing still in the
christian course, for this is usually the prelude to
turning back ; there is no safety but in advancing
by God's help, " from strength to strength, until
every one of us appeareth before God in Zion."

5. Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before
all the assembly of the congregation of the children of
Israel.

NUMBERS XIV. 1—9. 59

6. And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of
Jephunneh, tchich were of them that searched the land,
rent their clothes :

7. And they spake unto all the company of the children
of Israel, saying. The land, ivhich ive passed through
to search it, is an exceeding good land.

8. If the Lord delight in v^, then he ivill bring v.s
into this land, and give it us; a land which foweth with
milk and honey.

9. Only rebel not ye against the Lord, neither fear
ye the people of the land ; for they are bread for us ;
their defence is departed from them, and the Lord is
loith us : fear them not.

Behold here the bold and faithful effort made
by Joshua and Caleb to turn back the hearts of
the people, and to persuade them to continue on
the good course, upon which they had hitherto
been journeying. How assured were they of
success, and yet how entirely did they look froin
themselves for the means of obtaining it. They
did not say, " The land is an exceeding good
land," and it requires only courage and resolution,
and perseverance on our part to obtain possession,
but they wisely and piously referred all to " Him
"who alone ruleth in the kingdoms of men,"
saying, " If the Lord delight in us, then he will
bring us into this land, and give it us;" "The
Lord is with us, fear them not." Their hope is
placed in something not in themselves, and there-

60 NUMBERS XIV. 1—9.

fore no infirmity, no helplessness of theirs can
destroy it. Observe our divine Master animating
his followers at a later period and upon a far
higher subject, with precisely the same glorious
" hope that maketh not ashamed." These are
his words, when cheering on the soldiers of the
cross to the great conflict, and to the blessed in-
heritance that lay before them, " Fear not, little
flock, it is your Father's good pleasure to give
you the kingdom." There is the Christian's rock ;
it has been his Father's good pleasure to call him
to the knowledge of his Son and faith in him ;
and he is sure that, united thus to the true vine,
of which he has been made by free and sovereign
grace a living branch, he shall never be cast off"
in his hour of need, but shall continue to draw
the strength he daily prays for, until that most
blessed declaration of the divine word shall be
fulfilled in his own happy experience, " Whom
he (God) called, them he also justified, and whom
he justified, them he also glorified."*

* Rom. v\u. 30.

IsUMBERS XIV. 10—19. 61

EXPOSITION XV.

Numbers xiv. 10 — 19.

10. But all the congregation bade stone them with
stones. And the glory of the Lord appeared in the
tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of
Israel.

11. And the Lord said unto Moses, How long will
this people provoke me ? and how long will it be ere they
believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among
them ?

12. I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit
them, and will make of thee a greater nation and
mightier than they.

We find from this passage of scripture, that
the Israelites were so fearfully misled by the un-
faithful spies, that not content with disobeying
God and entering into open rebellion against
Him, they were proceeding to acts of violence
and cruelty against his most faithful servants,
Joshua and Caleb, and were about to take away
their lives. Then the Lord, even the Lord Je-
hovah, of whose deep and astonishing interest in
the welfare of his persecuted people, we have
before spoken, could no longer forbear, but de-
scended in all the glory of the Shechinah, into the

62 NUMBERS XIV. 10—19.

tabernacle, in the sight of all the people, and
expostulated, in the manner we have just read,
with Moses. What a humiliating enquiry is that
made by the Almighty ! " How long will it be
ere they believe me, for all the signs which I
have shewed among them ?" And yet such is
the hardness of the human heart, that we fear a
very similar question might be asked of many
among ourselves, How long will it be ere they
believe me, notwithstanding all the mercies that I
have shewed among them ? Long, indeed, is every
child of Adam before he learns, unhesitatingly
and habitually, to trust his best and dearest friend.
Long, indeed, is every sinner in coming in faith
and confidence to his only Saviour. So long,
that were it not for the " grace of God preventing
him that he might have this good will, and work-
ing with him " when he has it, time would be far
too short to attract the rebel heart of man to him
who alone can change it, and lead the cold and
carnally disposed affections cordially to cling to
him, who is the God of all our mercies.

The anger of God was now mightily aroused,
and while looking in terrible suspense for the
awful result, Moses once more interposed, and
in a strain of astonishing intercession is permitted
thus to reason against the determination of the
Almighty.

NUMBERS XIY. 10—19. 63

13. And Moses said unto the Lord, Then the Egyp-
tians shall hear it, {for thoxi broughtest vp this peop)le
in thy might from among them;)

14. And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this
land : for they have heard that thou Lord art among
this people, that thou Lord art seen face to face, and
that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest
before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in
a pillar of fire by night.

15. Now if thou shalt kill all this peop)le as one man,
then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will
speak, saying,

16. Because the Lord was not able to bring this peo-
ple into the land which he sivare unto them, therefore
he hath slain them in the wilderness.

17. And now, I beseech thee, let the power of my
Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying,

18. The Lord is longsuffering, and of great mercy,
forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means

clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers
upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.

19. Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people
according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou
hast forgiven this ])sople , from Egypt even until now.

How beautiful an instance of intercession !
Moses reminds the Lord of all his unnumbered
mercies, of all that he has already done for his
people, and makes it a plea for still greater bless-
ings, and still more abundant manifestations.
Moses dares not say, " Pardon the iniquity of this
people, for it is small ; he perhaps hesitated to say,

64 NUMBERS XIV. 10—19.

as David did, under a clearer revelation, " Pardon
my sin, for it is greats But he builds on a sure
foundation, his experience of God's abounding
mercy, " Pardon, I beseech thee, according unto
the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast for-
given this people until now."

What a plea is this for the Christian! We
dare not extenuate our sins, we dare hardly trust
ourselves to think of their real magnitude and
atrocity, even in the holiest of God's children.
How merciful, then, that though they be "red
like crimson," the promise is that they shall be
" white as snow ;" though they " be as scarlet,
they shall be as wool," in the case of every peni-
tent believer who casts himself unreservedly upon
God's infinite mercy in Christ Jesus. No excep-
tion is made, no distinction between " venial sins,"
and " mortal sins," since all sins need, and need
equally, the blood of Christ, which alone is
declared to " cleanse from all sin ;" whether before
or after baptism, whether what men call small or
great. How blessed, therefore, is it that we have
a God of infinite mercy, at all times to be ap-
proached through a Saviour of infinite love ! May
we all seek grace thus to come in penitence and
faith, and we may rest assured that neither the
shame, nor the guilt of sin, shall be left to distress
us here, or to condemn us hereafter.

NUMBERS XIV. 20—35. 65

EXPOSITION XVI.

Numbers xiv. 20 — 35.

20. And the Lord said, I have pardoned according
to thy word :

21. But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled
with the glory of the Lord.

22. Because all those men which have seen my glory,
and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wil-
derness, have tempted me noiv these ten times, and have
not hearkened to my voice ;

23. Surely they shall not see the land which I sioare
unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that pro-
voked me see it :

24. But my servant Caleb, because he had another
spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I
bring into the land xohereinto he went; and his seed
shall possess it.

25. {Novj the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwelt
in the valley.) To morroiv turn you, and get you into
the wilderness by the way of the Bed sea.

Moses had, as we have seen, earnestly prayed
that the Lord would restrain his fierce anger, and
not cut off, at a blow, this great congregation,
lest his enemies should blaspheme, and say that
the Lord was not able to fulfil his promises to
Israel. The Almighty here commences his
answer to the prayer of Moses, with the striking

66 NUMBERS XIV. 20—35.

words, " I have pardoned according to thy word."
The great, and terrible, and well-deserved pu-
nishment shall not be inflicted, but the Lord
cannot permit the faithful and the unfaithful,
the holy and the unholy, on so momentous an
occasion as the present, to fare alike. " Those
men that have tempted me," are the words of
Jehovah, " shall not see the land which I sware
unto their fathers. But my servant Caleb, be-
cause he hath followed me fully, him will I bring
into the land and his seed shall possess it."

How unspeakable a blessing is it, where the
heart of the young, for Caleb was a young man, is
influenced by the same Spirit, which directed him,
" to follow the Lord fully." Not wavering be-
tween God and the world, sometimes following
the one and sometimes the other, but steadily
and resolutely bent to follow only God, and to
do this with all their heart and mind, and soul
and strength. It was difficult, no doubt, for
Caleb thus to oppose himself to the o])inions of
ten faithless companions ; and no doubt equally
difficult to resist the contempt, the hatred, the
open enmity of the people ; but all this he did,
and by God's help effectually, and all this, if
so tried, we may do, in the same cause and by
the same Almighty helper ; nay more, all this
we must do, if we would be partakers, through
grace, of the heavenly promises.

NUMBERS XIV. 20—35. 67

26. And the Lord spake unto Moses, and unto Aaron,
raying,

27. How long shall I bear with this evil congregation,
tchich iminnvr against me ? I have heard the mur-
murings of the children of Israel, which they murmur
against me.

28. Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the Lord,
as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you :

29. Your carcases shall fall in this wilderness ; and
all that were numbered of you, according to your whole
number, from twenty years old and upward, which
have murmured against me,

30. Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, con-
cerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save
Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.

31. But your little ones, which ye said should be a
prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land
which ye have despised.

32. But as for you, your carcases, they shall fall in
this wilderness.

33. And your children shall wander in the wilderness
forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your car-
eases be wasted in the wilderness.

34. After the number of the days in which ye
searched the land, even forty days (each day for a year)
shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye
shall know my breach of promise.

35. I the Lord have said, I will surely do it unto all
this evil congregation that are gathered together against
me : in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and
there they shall die.

68 NUMBERS XIV. 20—35.

Such was the close of the Almighty's sentence
upon Israel. Forty days had they wasted in
searching the land, and now forty years shall
their " carcases be wasted in the wilderness ;"
until not one who was turned of twenty years
of age, at the time of the disobedience, should
survive. How fearful is the error of those, who
have asserted, that the Lord beholds no sin in
any of his chosen people ! Were any people
ever so much the obvious objects of God's choice,
as the church in the wilderness? And yet were
any people ever visited more rigorously, ])unished
more severely? Let us not deceive ourselves,
God will not, cannot away with sin. He who
hopes to dwell with the Holy One that inha-
biteth eternity, must walk holily with Him
upon earth ; he who will be saved by Jesus, must
remember that He was " so called, because He
came to save his people /rom their sins." " Three
righteousnesses," says the judicious Hooker, " are
the portion of every true believer ; that, whereby
we are justified, which is perfect, but not in-
herent. That, whereby we are sanctified, which
is inherent, but not perfect. And that wherewith
we shall be clothed in the world to come, which
is both perfect and inherent" *

* See Hooker's Discourse of Justification. Sect, iii. pp.
16, 17.

NUMBERS XIV. 36—45. 69

EXPOSITION XVII.

Numbers xiv. 36 — 45.

36. And the men which Moses sent to search the
land, who returned, and made all the congregation to
murmur against him, by bringing up a slander upon the
land,

37. Even those men that did bring up the evil report
upon the land, died by the plague before the Lord.

38. But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son
of Jephunneh, which were of the men that went to search
the land, lived stilL

39. And Moses told these sayings unto all the chil-
dren of Israel : and the people mourned greatly.

40. And they rose up early iti the morning, and gat
them up into the top of the mountain, saying, Lo, we
be here, and will go up unto the place which the Lord
hath promised : for we have sinned.

Perhaps, to convince the people of Israel that
all which the Lord had threatened should as-
suredly come to pass, was the Lord's judgment
upon the ten faithless spies, carried instantly into
execution. The Israelites could no longer say,
This is but a distant threatening ; before the
forty years will elapse, the Lord will doubtless
have relented. No, beholding, as they did, the
instantaneous death of the spies, they must have

70 NUMBERS XIV. 36—45.

been most fully convinced that their own, though
a little longer delayed, would assuredly happen
within the period which the Almighty had an-
nounced. Still they resolved to make one effort
for their preservation, but alas ! as ill-considered
and as little likely to succeed, as anything that
the self-willed heart of man could have devised.
Thev now resolve to go up in their own strength
and achieve that, from which, when commanded
to attempt in the strength of Omnipotence, they
had faithlessly shrunk.

41. And Moses said, Wherefoi'e now do ye transffress
the commandment of the Lord ? but it shall not prosper.

42. Go not up, for the Lord is not among you ; that
ye be not smitten before your enemies.

43. For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there
before you, and ye shall fall by the sword : because ye
are turned away from the Lord ; therefore the Lord
will not be with you.

44. But they presumed to go up unto the hill-top;
nevertheless, the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and
Moses, departed not out of the camp.

45. Then the Amalekites came down and the Ca-
naanites which dwelt in that hill, and smote them, and
discomfited them, even unto Hormah.

What a wonderful instance of folly and dis-
obedience ! Although warned so distinctly by
Moses, and unaccompanied by God, for the ark,
and therefore the pillar of cloud remained in the

NUMBERS XIV. 36—45. 71

camp, tliis infatuated people determined to go
up alone, and meet their enemies. Who can be
surprised at the result ? Nay, who would not
have been surprised had it been any other than
it was, that their enemies smote them with a
o^reat slaug-liter.

Such must ever be the consequence of warring
in our own strength and relying up&n our own
powers. From the very moment that we attempt
this, our defeat is certain, our ruin inevitable.
Let the young Christian especially lay this to
heart. Full of confidence and spirits, he has,
perhaps, already been successful over many an
opposing temptation, let him, indeed, thank God
and take courage. But let it not produce in
him a single feeling of self-confidence ; let him
shrink from the very thought of entering into
any conflict without the presence and grace of
his divine Leader. So accompanied, he is indeed
invincible, but this unsought for, he is weaker
than he who is " crushed before the moth."

While this consideration most powerfully urges
caution, let it not engender even a momentary
feeling of distrust. Observe what Moses says
to the Israelites, " Because ye are turned away
from the Lord, therefore the Lord will not be
with you." The Almighty did not forsake them,
it was they who forsook God. Never was there

72 NUMBERS XV. 32— 3G.

an instance of a single, humble, devoted follower
of the great Jehovah, having been left unpro-
tected in the midst of his enemies. Many have
entered into the conflict trembling with fear
at the unequal contest, but none ever left it,
who had trusted fully and faithfully to the arm
of Omnipotence, without having been enabled
to raise the triumphant cry, " Thanks be unto
God who giveth us the victory through our Lord
Jesus Christ. Therefore, ray beloved brethren,
be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in
the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that
your labour shall not be in vain in the Lord."

EXPOSITION XVIII.

[Here may be read the first thirty-one verses of
chapter xv.]

Numbers xv. 32 — 36.

32. And while the children of Israel were in the wil-
derness, they found a man that gathered sticks tipon the
sabbath day.

33. And they that found him gathering sticks brought
him unto Moses and Aaron, and unto all the congre-
gation.

6

NUMBERS XV. 32—36. 73

34. And they ])ut him in loard, because it was not
declared what should he done to him.

35. And the Lord said unto Moses, The man shall
he surely j^ut to death : all the congregation shall stone
him with stones without the camp.

36. And all the congregation brought him without
the camp, and stoned him with stones, and he died; as
the Lord commanded Moses.

Upon first reading these verses, we may be
led, perhaps, to thinli, that this sentence was
peculiarly severe. The man was merely em-
ployed in his daily work of gathering sticks for
his fire, wherewith to seethe his necessary food.
Even Moses and the congregation before whom
he was brought, do not appear to have been
aware of the nature of the punishment that he
had incurred, for they say, " It was not declared
what should be done to him."

A little reflection, however, will convince us,
that every individual of the children of Israel
must have been perfectly acquainted with the
fact, that the punishment was death, although
doubtless ignorant of the kind of death, to which
the sabbath breaker was exposed. Had no
punishment, indeed, been previously affixed to
the crime of sabbath-breaking, which the words
we have just read, would appear, at first sight,
to intimate, there might have been, at least, a

E

74 NUMBERS XV. 3'2— 36.

plausible ground of complaint; but on referring
to the thirty- fifth chapter of Exodus, we find it
very distinctly stated, " Six days shall work be
done, but on the seventh day, tliere shall be to
you an holy day, a sabbath of rest to the Lord :
whosoever doeth work therein shall be put to
death. Ye shall kindle no fire throughout your
habitations upon the sabbath-day." The man,
therefore, had not only been guilty of an infrac-
tion of a well-known law, and consequently
become obnoxious to an equally well-known
sentence, but he had broken this law in a pecu-
liarly flagrant and offensive manner, selecting
that very act to commit, which the Almighty
had selected, in so especial a manner, to forbid.
When, therefore, the congregation asserted, that
" It was not declared what should be done to
him," it is perfectly evident, that they only in-
tended to state, that it had not pleased the Al-
mighty to reveal to them the mode of the pu-
nishment that awaited the sabbath-breaker.
This He now did, for, as we have read, " The
Lord commanded all the congregation to stone
him with stones without the camp."

The sabbath-breaking Israelite committed a
double act of profanation and rebellion, " for the
Lord their God was their king." The sabbath-
breaking Christian, as he does not, in this latter

NUMBERS XV. 32—36. 75

respect, commit the same sin, so is he, thanks
be to God, not amenable to the same punish-
ment. Still is his crime unquestionably great ;
and if his heart be truly converted to God, most
anxious will he be to avoid the smallest breach
of the merciful command, which has selected one
day in seven, as the Lord's day, the Lord's own
day, to be devoted wholly and entirely to his
service. Human laws can do little positively
to effect this, but negatively, or in the way of
prevention, they may, by God's help, do much.
They may, and ought, for instance, to preserve
to every man, whatever be his station, the power
to keep this commandment of his God, to secure
to him untouched a seventh portion of his time
for God, and thus to throw a fence around the
rich, which his pursuit of business, luxury, or
jjleasure, shall not be allowed to overleap ; and
a shield over the poor, which the commands
of those above him shall not be permitted to
penetrate. If this were effected, much, very
much, would be done to hallow this holy day,
perhaps as much as human legislation is designed
to do. The great object of the Lord's day can
only be achieved by the power of Divine grace
upon the heart. It is that, and that alone, which
can enable us to spend it holily, and yet happily.
It is that alone which can teach us to know no

B 2

76 NUMBERS XVI. 1 — 11.

weariness in the service of our God, to delight
to tread his courts, to meditate upon his word,
to partake of his sacraments, to hold communion
with the saints on eartli, and those in heaven,
as members together with them of the church
of the first-born, and rejoicing in our union with
the same Saviour who has made us one with
Him, as He also is one with our Father which
is in heaven.*

[Here way he read from verse 37, to the end
of the chapter.']

EXPOSITION XIX.

Numbers xvi. 1 — 11.

1 . Now Korah, the son of Izhur, the son of Kohcith,
the son of Levi, and Dathan and Ahiram, the sons of
Eliah, and On, the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took
men ;

2. And they rose np before Moses, with certain of
the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of
the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of re-
nown :

3. And they gathered themselves together against

* See John xvii. 21.

NUMBERS XVI. 1—11. 11

Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them. Ye take
too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy,
every one of them, and the Lord is among them : where-
fore then lift ye up yourselces above the congregation
of the Lord ?

4. And lohen Moses heard it, he fell upon his face.

We have lately read of rebellion and disobe-
dience among the children of Israel, in which
the great mass of the people took the prominent
part : but, in these verses, we commence a still
more disgraceful incident in their history, a
rebellion in which the princes of the congrega-
tion, the men of renown, and even the members
of the highly honoured tribe of Levi, formed the
ringleaders. Never was there a meeker man
than Moses, and yet this is the man whom these
restless and rebellious spirits accuse of setting
himself up above the congregation of the Lord.
But such has been the case in every age ; there
is a natural tendency in the mind of fallen man
to depreciate and malign all who are placed over
him by the providence of God, and it is only
by constant watchfulness that even the Christian
can hope, uniformly, to avoid the sin of those
who " walk after the flesh," and, as the apostle
adds, " are not afraid to speak evil of dignities." *
These are days especially, when such sins must

* 2 Peter ii. 10.

78 NUMBERS XVI. 1—11.

be most anxiously striven against, for there have
been, for some years past, such a loosening of
all the bands of discipline, and such an obvious
tendency to disparage the ruling povrers, whether
civil or ecclesiastical, and even to slight and
contemn them, manifested by almost all orders
in society, that the call to watchfulness and
prayerfulness upon this important subject, was
never more earnestly needed than at the pre-
sent moment.

Whether, in the instance before us, the gain-
sayers, if left to themselves, would have advanced
still further, and have proceeded from slanderous
speeches to rebellious actions, we have no means
of knowing. Moses acted, as every man of God,
under similar circumstances, should act, he re-
strained his own feelings, and bridled his tongue,
until he had first sought counsel of the Lord.
He fell upon his face before God, and received
such guidance as the deep emergency of the
moment called for. For we cannot doubt, that
in all which followed he spake and acted, by the
direct inspiration from on high.

5. And he spake unto Korah and unto all his cotn-
pany, saying, Even to-morrow the Lord will shew who
are his, and who is holy ; and will cause him to come
near unto hitn : even him whom he hath chosen will he
cause to come near unto him.

NUMBERS XVI. 1—11. 79

6. This do : Take you censers, Korah, and all his
company ;

7. And put fire therein, and put incense in them
before the Lord to-morrow : and it shall be that the
man whom the Lord doth choose, he shall be holy : ye
take too much upon you, ye so7is of Levi.

8. And Moses said unto Korah, Hear, I pray you, ye
sons of Levi :

9. Seemeth it but a small thing unto you, that the
God of Israel hath separated you from the congregation
of Israel, to bring you near to himself to do the service
of the tabernacle of the Lord, and to stand before the
congregation to minister unto them ?

10. And he hath brought thee near to him, and all
thy brethren the sons of Levi with thee : and seek ye
the priesthood also ?

1 ] . For which cause both thou and all thy company
are gathered together against the Lord : and what is
Aaron, that ye murmur against him ?

In these words, we find Moses still retaining
the most perfect self-possession and command
both of words and actions, no doubt the effect
of having committed himself to God, as we have
seen, in secret prayer. He does " not return
railing for railing," but is content, simply, to
place his cause in the hands of the Most High,
and to say, '' The Lord will show who are his,
and who are holy." What an admirable pattern
is this for the imitation of all, but especially
of those in authority ; how difficult is it to bear

80 NUMBERS XVI . 1—11.

the undeserved animadversions of those beneath
us, with christian humility ; how arduous to
possess, at the same time, a proper command
over others, and a sufficient curb upon our own
spirit ! In all the superior relationships of life,
much grace is required for this important duty,
for it is to be feared that a great deal of the
insubordination and contempt of authority, to
which we have referred, is to be traced to the
manner in which that authority has been exer-
cised. In proportion as there are clemency, and
kindness, and consideration in those who rule,
there will, generally, be found a ready and affec-
tionate demeanour in those who obey. And
in proportion as rulers exercise their authority
" in the Lord," and govern by Him and for Him,
so will subjects, in the language of our Church,
" faithfully serve, honour, and humbly obey them
in Him and for Him, according to his blessed
word and ordinance." *

* Communion Service of the Church of England.

NUMBERS XVI. 12—22. 81

EXPOSITION XX.

Numbers xvi. 12 — 22-.

12. And Moses sent to cull Dathan and Abiram, the
sons of Eliah : which said. We will not come vp :

13. Is it a small thing that thou hast brought us up
out of a land that fioweth with milk and honey, to kill
lis in the wilderness, except thou make thyself altogether
a prince over us ?

14. Moreover thou hast not brought us into a land
that fioweth with milk and honey, or given us inherit-
ance of fields and vineyards : wilt thou put out the eyes
of these men ? we will not come up.

In the last portion of Scripture, we had the
account of Moses' expostulation with Korah ;
having disposed of him as the ringleader of the
rebellion, Moses next addresses himself to Dathan
and Abiram, ordering them to come up and state
plainly their grievances and their intentions.
This they insolently refused to do, saying at
once, " We will not come up," and taunting
Moses with having brought them out under false
])retences, and promised what he was unable to
perform ; asking him whether he meant so to
blind the eyes of the congregation, that they
should mistake the parched and arid wilderness,

£ 5

82 NUMBERS XVI. 12—22.

for a land flowing with milk and honey. It is
curious to see how men, to serve a temporary
purpose, will mis-state the plainest matters of
fact. These rebels, who accuse Moses of leading
them out to die in the wilderness, entirely sup-
press the cause of it ; they affect to forget that
if they had followed his directions, they would
have been at that very moment in actual pos-
session of the land they so much coveted ; that
it was simply because they had refused, when
Moses commanded them to enter Canaan, that
they w^ere still wanderers in the desert. So that,
in fact, the very charge which they made against
their leader, could be brought, with propriety,
only against themselves. We cannot be sur-
prised, therefore, to read,

15. And Moses was very wroth, and said unto the
Lord, Respect not thou their offering : I have not taken
one ass from them, neither have I hurt one of them.

16. And Moses said unto Korah, Be thou and all
thy company before the Lord, thou, and they, and
Aaron, to-morrow :

17. And take every man his censer, and put incense
in them, and bring ye before the Lord every man his
censer, two hundred and fifty censers ; thou also, and
Aaron, each of you his censer,

18. And they took every man his censer, and put fire
in than, and laid incense thereon, and stood in the door
of the tabernacle of the congregation with Moses and
Aaron.

NUMBERS XVI. 12—22. 83

19. And Ko rah gathered all the congregation against
them unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation :
and the glory of the Lord appeared unto all the congre-
gation.

20. And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron,
saying,

2 1 . Separate yourselves from among this congregation,
that I may consume them in a moment.

22. And they fell upon their faces, and said, O God,
the God of the spirits of all fiesh, shall one man sin,
and wilt thou he wroth with all the congregation ?

The Lord was now arising; to avv.no;e his own
cause. Moses had called upon the Almighty to
arbitrate between them. He had declared the
perfect uprightness with which he had conducted
himself in all his transactions with this rebellious
people, and had besought the Lord to respect
not their offering ; but when he saw how mightily
the anger of the Lord was aroused, his own wrath
was instantly dispelled, and like Abraham of
old, he began to plead with God, " Wilt thou
destroy the righteous with the wicked ? that be
far from thee, O Lord :" " shall one man sin,
and wilt thou be wrath with all the congrega-
tion ?" How eminently was Moses thus a type
of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who
" made intercession for the transgressors !" Al-
though the authority of Moses was most vio-

84 NUMBERS XVI. 12—22.

lently attacked, and he slighted and scorned,
and this not merely by Korah, Dathan, and
Abiram, for it is distinctly said, that they had
" gathered all the congregation against him,"
yet does he forget every personal consideration
in the feelings of tender compassion with which
he views the misled and erring people, and thinks
only of warding off from them the coming visita-
tion of God's vengeance. How beautiful an
instance of sympathy ! but how inferior to that
which it typified ! Moses' power, though threat-
ened, was yet untouched ; his person, though
insulted, was unmolested, when he thus besought
the favour of the Almighty upon his enemies.
Far different was the state of Him, who, suffer-
ing, bleeding, dying, prayed, " Father, forgive
them, for they know not vvhat they do."

Blessed Jesus, let us seek no model lower than
thyself. Patriarchs, prophets, martyrs, saints,
with all their resplendent gifts and graces, are
as nothing, and less than nothing, when compared
with the lustre of thy divine and infinite per-
fections. Teach us, we beseech thee, to view
thee not only as a sacrifice for sin, but also an
ensample of godly life, that we may daily en-
deavour ourselves to follow thy most blessed
steps, until they lead us, through thy merits,
from time into eternity.

NUMBERS XVI. 23—34. 8.5

EXPOSITION XXL

Numbers xvi. 23 — 34.

23. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

24. Speak unto the congregation saying. Get you up
from about the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan and

Abiram,

25. And Moses rose iqi and went unto Dathan and
Abiram; and the elders of Israel folloioed him.

26. xbid he spake unto the congregation, saying.
Depart, I pray you, from the tents of these wicked
men, and touch nothing of their's, lest ye be consumed
in all their sins.

27. So they gat up from the tabernacle of Korah,
Dathan, and Abiram, on every side : and Dathan and
Abiram came out, and stood in the door of their tents,
and their wives, and their sons, and their little children.

The prayer of Moses, to which we referred in
the last Exposition, that God should spare the
congregation, while he punished the rebels, is an-
swered in the portion of Scripture we have just
read. The Lord desired Moses to call upon the
comparatively innocent, to separate themselves
from the guilty. Moses, accordingly, goes to the
tent of the conspirators, Dathan and Abiram,
attended by the seventy elders of Israel, and

86 NUMBERS XVI. 23—34.

there urges the people to return to their alle-
giance. Happily, his advice was not unattended
to. The congregation, warned in time, fled from
the wrath to come, and none but Dathan and
Abiram, and their families, were left in their
tents. How solemn a moment ! These wicked
men, persevering in their audacity and rebellion,
remain yet unsoftened, and instead of falling
upon their knees before their offended Lawgiv^er,
or upon their faces before God, appear deter-
mined to brave his vengeance, and to ask, who
is the Lord that we should fear Him ? But
before we hasten to the conclusion of their sen-
tence, let us for a moment consider, in what did
the congregation, who had been temporarily with
them in their rebellion, find their safety ? Only
in flight. In an entire separation from these
hardened and guilty men. Had the urgent and
affectionate cry of Moses, " Depart, I pray you,
from the tents of these wicked men, and touch
nothing of theirs," been disregarded, no one can
presume to doubt that, however different might
have been their degrees of guilt, they would
have been involved in one common destruction.
Surely here is matter of deep and earnest re-
flection to many among ourselves ; are we volun-
tarily the friends, the associates, the intimates of
those, who are living in any open sins, or in a

NUMBERS XYI. 23—34. 87

course of disobedience and rebellion against
God ? Let us not imagine, that because we go
not all lengths with them, we shall be safe.
There is security only in separation. God him-
self has said, speaking of the mystical Babylon,
" Come out of her, my people, that ye be not
partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of
her plagues." * And in this course of conduct
only, can the people of God enjoy, or expect to
enjoy, either security or peace.

28. And Moses said, Hereby ye shall know that the
Lord hath sent me to do all these works : for I have
not done them of mine oo a mind.

29. If these men die the common death of all men,
or if they be visited after the visitation of all men ; then
the Lord hath not sent me.

30. But if the Lord make a new thing, and the earth
open her mouth, and sioallow them up, with all that
appertain unto them, and they go down quick into the
pit : then ye shall understand that these men hove pro-
voked the Lord.

Nothing could be more fair and reasonable,
than this proposition. Moses sees that the
people have begun to question his authority.
Well, he replies, then we will put it to the test ;
" If these men," who have opposed it, " die the
common death of all men," 1 acknowledge you
have justice on your side. Let us wait and see.

* Rev. xviii. 4.

88 NUMBERS XVI. 23—34.

3 1 . And it came to j)ass, us he had made an end of
speaking all these words, that the ground clave asunder
that was under them :

32. A7id the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed
them up, and their houses, and all the men that apper-
tained unto Korah, and all their goods.

33. They, and all that appertained to them, ivent
down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon
them: and they perished from among the congregation.

34. And all Israel that tvere round about them fled
at the cry of them : for they said. Lest the earth sioalloiv
us up also.

Such is the tragical close of this sad history.
The disputed authority of Moses and Aaron is
re-established by the miraculous deaths of those
who had impugned it; while the Aaronieal
priesthood is defended from the violent aggres-
sion of headstrong men, who, not content with
the honour which the Almighty had already
conferred on the tribe of Levi, sought to lay
unhallowed hands upon the ark of God, and to
force their way into a participation of those
sacred duties which the Almighty had reserved
for the priests alone. May the double lesson
not be without its use, in disposing the hearts
of us who read it, to render a more ready and
cheerful, and more consistent and conscientious
obedience to all who are placed in authority
over us, remembering that the word of God has

NUMBERS XVI. 35-50. 89

declared, " The powers that be are ordained of
God ; whosoever, therefore, resisteth the power,
resisteth the ordinance of God." (Rom. xiii. 1,2.

EXPOSITION XXII.

Numbers xvi. 35 — 50.

35. Atul there came out a fire from the Lord, and
consumed the two hundred and fifty 7nen that offered
incense.

36. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

37. Speak unto Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest,
that he take up the censers out of the burning, and
scatter thou the fire yonder ; for they are hallowed.

38. The censers of these sinners against their own
souls, let them make them broad plates for a covering of
the altar : for they offered them before the Lord, there-
fore they are hallowed : and they shall be a sign unto
the children of Israel.

39. And Eleazar the priest took the brazen censers,
wherewith they that were burnt had offered ; and they
were made broad plates for a covering of the altar :

40. To be a memorial unto the children of Israel,
that no stranger, which is not of the seed of Aaron,
come near to offer incense before the Lord ; that he be
not as Korah, and as his company : as the Lord said to
him by the hand of Moses.

While readino- of the destruction of Dathan
and Abirara, in the last portion of Scripture, we

90 NUMBERS XVI. 35-50.

may have observed that no distinct mention was
made of the death of Korah, but nevertheless,
he appears from a future cliapter, (Numbers xxvi.
10,) to have perished in the earthquake. Still,
however, his companions, the two hundred and
fifty conspirators against the priesthood, remained
standing at the door of the tabernacle, with their
burning censers in their hands, waiting for the
sentence of the Lord. Nor do they seem to
have been kept long in suspense, for no sooner
had the terrible judgment, of which we have
read, been inflicted upon one portion of this
guilty company, than an equally fearful fate falls
on the other. In a moment, the two hundred
and fifty rebels are consumed by fire from heaven,
and that the crime for which they suffered, viz.
an invasion of the priestly office, contrary to the
express appointment of the Most High, may
never be forgotten, their censers, the instruments
of their guilt, are ordered to be made into a
covering of the brazen altar, to stand as a me-
morial, before the eyes of the children of Israel,
for ever. How awful an example of the danger
of tampering with the sacred institutions of the
Almighty ! Living, as we no doubt do, under
a very different and much milder dispensation,
we dare not, as some have done, compare these
unhappy men to those of our own day who are
called to the ministry by a different species of

NUMBERS XVI. 35—50. 91

authority from that, which we, as members of the
Church of England prefer, because we believe
that no such similitude exists between the Jewish
Church and our own, as could in any degree
justify so gross a misapplication. Let not the
incident, however, be without its use, in still
warning us to lay no unhallowed hand upon the
ark of God, and in influencing us strongly to
refrain from all interference with any ordinances
and any institutions, in which we can trace the
directions, or recognise the authority of the Most
High.

41. But on the morrow all the congregation of the
children of Israel murmured against Moses and against
Aaron, saying, ye have killed the people of the Lord.

42. And it came to piass, when the congregation was
gathered against Moses and against Aaron, that they
looked toward the tabernacle of the congregation : a7id,
behold, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord
appeared.

43. And Moses and Aaron came before the tabernacle
of the congregation.

44. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

45. Get you up from among this congregation, that I
may consume them as in a moment. And they fell
upon their faces.

46. And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a censer, and
put f re therein from off the altar, and put on incense,
and go quickly unto the congregation, and make an
atonement for them : for there is wrath gone out from
the Lord ; the plague is begun.

92 NUMBERS XVI. 55—50.

How astonishing an instance of the obduracy
and hardheartedness of this rebellious people !
The very day following the awful inflictions, of
which we have read, the whole congregation
rise as one man, against the servants of the Lord,
accusing them, of what they perfectly well knew
them to be incapable, viz. of causing the earth
to open, and the fire to descend from heaven, for
the punishment of the rebels. Moses, therefore,
had interceded for them but in vain, for although
they had been spared, on the previous occasion,
in accordance with his anxious prayer, the Al-
mighty, on this repetition of the offence, gives
no warning. The sentence and its execution
come together ; " the plague has begun !" This
was the only signal, the punishment had no fore-
runner to announce its coming.

So will it be at the end of the world. Now,
there is one who " ever liveth to make interces-
sion ;" then, as the word is spoken, the blow
will fall ; and neither the rocks, nor the moun-
tains, shall be able to hide the guilty from the
vengeance of God's wrath.

47. And Aaron took as Moses commanded, and ran
into the midst of the congregation; and, behold, the
jilague was begun among the 'people : and he put on
incense, and made an atoneinent for the jieople.

48. And he stood between the dead and the living ;
and the plague was stayed.

NUMBERS XVI. 35—50. 93

49. Noio they that died in the iilague were fourteen
thousand and seven hundred, beside them that died about
the matter of Korah.

50. And Aaron returned unto Moses, unto the door
of the tabernacle of the congregation : and the plague
loas stayed.

How fearful a slaughter ! Fourteen thousand
sev'^en hundred of this stiffnecked people, swept
off, as in a moment ! And yet, had it not been
for the merciful interposition of Aaron, this
would have been a mere drop in the ocean
of God's wrath. How beautiful a type does the
head of the Jewish priesthood here afford us,
of the great and glorified head of the christian
church ! Aaron " stood between the dead and
the living, and the plague was stayed ;" Jesus,
as He died on Calvary, might be said by his
great atonement, the " one, full, perfect, and
sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and satisfaction, for
the sins of the whole world," to have done the
same ; and blessed be God, the plague ii stayed ;
for, " There is now no condemnation to them
that are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the
flesh, but after the Spirit." As Mediator and
as Intercessor, He still stands in the gap, and
never shall the plague spot destroy one humble,
believing penitent, who looks to Him for
cleansing, pardon, and life.

94 NUMBERS XVII. 1—13.

EXPOSITION XXIII.

Numbers xvii. 1 — 13.

1 . And the Lord spaJce unto Moses, saying,

2. Speak unto the children of Israel, and take of
every one of them a rod, according to the house of their

fathers, of all their princes, according to the house of
their fathers, twelve rods : write thou every man's name
■upon his rod.

3. And thou shalt write AarotHs name upon the rod
of Levi : for one rod shall be for the head of the house
of their fathers.

4. And thou shalt lay them up in the tahernacle of
the congregation before the testimony, where I will
meet with you.

5. And it shall come to 2)ass, that the man's rod,
whom I shall choose, shall blossom : and I will make to
cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel,
whereby they murmur against you.

6. And Moses spake unto the children of Israel, and
every one of their -princes gave him a rod apiece, for
each prince one, according to their fathers' houses, even
twelve rods : and the rod of Aaron was among their
rods.

7. And Moses laid up the I'ods before the Lord, in the
tabernacle of witness.

We have seen that the last fearful punishment
of the children of Israel was occasioned by a re-

5

NUMBERS XVII. 1—13. 95

bellion, which originated in the desire of the
Levites to usurp the office of the priesthood. It
was equally probable that every other tribe
might, at some time or other, be actuated by the
same ambitious feeling ; most mercifully, there-
fore, did it please the Almighty, to give them at
once so clear a manifestation of the Divine will
upon this point, that they should not only be
fully satisfied for the present, but that all possi-
bility of future murmurings, on this head, should
be suppressed. Jehovah directs every tribe to
be represented by a rod or staff, with the name
of each tribe inscribed separately upon each of
the staffs ; and promises that upon their remain-
ing one night in the tabernacle, the staff of the
hiffhlv-honoured tribe should bud, blossom, and
bear fruit. After this it was impossible, but that
all should be fully satisfied what the will of the
Lord was concerning them, which they appear
before to have affected to doubt ; and, accordingly,
from the period of this miraculously-marked
decision, we hear no more of ambitious men, of
other tribes, seeking the priesthood.

8. And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moses
toent into the tabernacle of witness : and, behold, the
rod of Aaron for the house of Levi teas bvdded, and
brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded
almonds.

96 NUMBERS XVII. 1—13.

9. And Moses hrouyht out all the rods from hefore
the Lord unto all the children of Israel : and they
looked, and took every man his rod.

10. And the Lord said iinto Moses, Bnng Aaron s
rod again hefore the testimony, to be kept for a token
against the rebels ; and thou shall quite take away their
murmurings from me, that they die not.

1 1 . And Moses did so : as the Lord commanded him,
so did he.

12. And the children of Israel spake unto Moses,
saying. Behold, toe die, we perish, we all perish.

13. Whosoever cometh anything near unto the taber-
nacle of the Lo)'d, shall die. Shall we be consumed
with dying ?

We have here the conclusion of the remark-
able and miraculous trial : the twelve rods are
taken from the tabernacle ; eleven of them re-
main dry, and leafless, and dead, as %vhen they
were placed there, while Aaron's rod alone shows
marks of life and fertility, bearing at once, buds,
blossoms, and almonds. This decides the point,
that from the tribe of Levi, and from that only,
should those be taken who were to enjoy the
high honour of the Jewish priesthood, and to
minister before God in his sanctuai'y. How
simple and beautiful a method of establishing a
fact of such deep importance ! Henceforth there
could be neither rivalry nor jealousy. It had
pleased God, thus to demonstrate by whom he
7

NUMBERS XVII. 1—13. 97

should be served, and it would require even more
than Jewish audacity, to attempt to gainsay, or
controvert it.

But while this plain and powerful lesson was
taught to the whole house of Israel, by the sig-
nificant symbol of which we have just read,
surely another and not less important, might be
suggested by it to the mind of Aaron, and to
every future servant of the Most High, and
which we should each, in our different stations,
endeavour to remember. Any change might
have taken place in the rod at the will of the
Most High. It might have been, like the rod
of Moses, turned into a serpent; but no, the
change, commanded by the Almighty, was, that
it should blossom and bring forth fruit. Fit
emblem to typify a servant of the Lord ! " Ye
have not chosen me, but I have chosen you,"
said our Lord to his disciples, " and ordained
you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit."
" He that abideth in me and I in him, the same
bringeth forth much fruit." Let us, then, never
forget that this must always be the distinctive mark
of those who serve the Lord. That blossoms, not
leaves ; that fruit, not wood ; have ever been the
peculiarities of the trees which the Lord hath
planted. Without this, all is useless, profitless,
the mere service of the lips, and therefore of no

F

98 NUMBERS XX. 1-C.

avail. It is in bringing forth much fruit to God,
that the Holy Spirit is glorified, and the Father
honoured, and the blessed Saviour magnified ;
for fruit can only grow from our engrafting on
the true vine, from our union with Him who has
said, " Without me, ye can do nothing."

EXPOSITION XXIV.

\_Here may he read chajJters xviii. and xix.]
Numbers xx. 1 — 6.

1. Then came the children of Israel, even the whole
congregation, into the desert of Zin, in the first month :
and the people abode in Kadesh ; and Miriam died
there, and was buried there.

There is a long pause in the history of the
Israelites, between the events which we last read,
and those which are recorded in the chapter we
have now commenced. No less a period than
eight and thirty years has intervened, of which
no record has been handed down to us. Had
Moses written as an historian, this would be un-
intelligible, but writing, as He did, as a legis-
lator, and, therefore, rather to perpetuate the

NUMBERS XX. 1—6. 99

laws and ordinances of God, than to communicate
the minute facts of the Jewish history, we can
well understand the reason, that his narrative
is confined to the two first years, and the last of
the sojourning of the Israelites.

During this long interval, the threatening of
the Almighty had been fulfilled, and all who
were above twenty years of age in the congrega-
tion, at the time of the spies, had been cut off.
Now also Miriam, the elder sister of Moses, is
called to her rest. She is honoured, by the
Prophet Micah, by being classed with her bro-
thers, as a leader of the children of Israel, when
speaking in the person of the Almighty, he says,
" O my people, what have I done unto thee ?
For I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt,
and redeemed thee out of the house of servants,
and I sent before thee, Moses, Aaron, and Mi-
riam."* But, alas! she also had been one of
the murmurers, and must die the death. Great
privileges are no preservatives against great sins.
Let the highest, as well as the lowest, in the
Christian family, remember, that, " When lust
hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin ; and sin,
when it is finished, bringeth forth death." f
Miriam had lusted for jjower, and murmured at
the supremacy of Moses, and had asked with
* Micah vi. 3, 4. f James i. 15.

F 2

100 NUMBERS XX. 1-G.

vain-glorious self-sufficiency, " Hath the Lord
indeed spoken only by Moses? Hath He not
spoken also by us ?" She was, therefore, num-
bered with " them that had sinned, whose car-
cases," to use the words of the apostle to the
Hebrews, " fell in the wilderness." *

2. And there was no loater for the congregation : and
they gathered themselves together against Moses and
against Aaron.

3. And the people chode with Moses, and spake,
saying. Would God that we had died when our brethren
died before the Lord !

4. And why have ye brought up the congregation of
the Lord into this wilderness, that we and our cattle
should die there ?

5. And wherefore have ye made us to come up out of
Egypt, to bring us in 7into this evil place ? it is noplace
of seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of pomegranates ; neither
is there any water to drink.

6. And Moses and Aaron went from the presence of
the assembly unto the door of the tabernacle of the
congregation, and they fell upon their faces : and the
glory of the Lord appeared unto them.

We must not confound this rebellion of the
children of Israel, for want of water, with that
of which we have before spoken, in the seven-
teenth chapter of Exodus, where precisely the
same circumstance occurred, and Moses, at the

* Heb. iii. i7.

NUMBERS XX. 1—6. 101

command of God, brought water out of the rock
in Horeb. That event took place, when, as we
are told, the people " had pitched in Rephidim,"
after having left the wilderness of Zin, and it is
probable that during their long sojourn in the
lower lands, these waters may have supplied
them, but now, once more in a mountainous
country, since the people talk of bringing them
" up into this wilderness," their supplies had
failed.

It is worthy of our observation, that the Is-
raelites were thus tried by the same temptation
during their first, and during their last year's
sojourn in the wilderness, and sad to say, in both
cases fell victims to their impatience and un-
belief. True it is, that the former generation
had passed away, and another and entirely new
race had sprung up during the interval, but
assured as we are, that they " had heard with
their ears, and that their fathers had declared
unto them, the noble works that God did in their
days, and in the old time before them," it only
renders it the more remarkable, that a second
generation should have inherited so entirely the
faithlessness of the first. We can almost imagine
that they were speaking the very words of their
fathers, when they talk of the figs, and the vines,
and the pomegranates of Egypt, which to them

102 NUMBERS XX. 1— G.

could only have been matters of history, and
which, therefore, rendered their impatience and
ingratitude even more blameable than their
fathers'.

It is impossible, however, not to see, that this
is one among the many proofs of the misery and
corruption of our fallen nature. A generation
wholly educated amidst the miracles of the
wilderness, clothed by miracle, fed by miracle,
guided by miracle, are yet as impatient under
the divine rule and governance of God, as their
fathers who had passed their youth amidst the
hardening idolatries of Egypt. So true is the
declaration of Holy Writ, that " The heart of
the sons of men is fully set in them, to do evil,"*
and that nothing but the change of that heart
by the Spirit of God, can afford any, the slightest
ground, to hope for obedience and holiness in
the life and conversation. May the language of
our church be the desire of all our souls, " Create
and make in us new and contrite hearts," for the
Lord Jesus Christ's sake.

* Eccles. viii. 2.

NUMBERS XX. 7—13. 103

EXPOSITION XXV.

Numbers xx. 7 — 13.

7. And the Lord apake unto Moses, saying,

8. Take the rod, and gather thou the assembhj toge-
ther, thou and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto
the rock before their eyes ; and it shall give forth his
ivater, and thou shall bring forth to them water out of
the rock : so thou shalt give the congregation and their
beasts drink.

9. And Moses took the rod from before the Lord, as
he commanded him.

It is very essential to a right understanding
of the most important and calamitous event in
the life of Moses, that we should attend to every
word of the passage we have just read. The
people had murmured for want of water ; Moses
and Aaron had sought direction of the Almighty,
and this was the reply, " Take the rod, gather
the assembly, and sipeak ye unto the rock, and it
shall give forth his water."

Obedience to God consists in doing, as exactly
as divine grace shall enable us, what God com-
mands, not satisfied with less, and not aiming at
more, believing the Almighty to be himself the
best judge of what lie requires of his servants.

104 NUMBERS XX. 7—13.

He who attemjjts to diminish what his Master
expects at his hands, and to do as little as pos-
sible, compatible with safety, is clearly not an
honest and faithful servant ; and he who adds to
the requirements of the Most High, those things
which he has learnt from the traditions of men,
such, for instance, as " the voluntary humility " ^
of the mendicant orders of the Romish Church,
or the " worshipping of angels," or any of the
other superstitious fallacies of the church to which
it belongs, will be, so an apostle intimates, " be-
guiled of his reward." Thus the man who pre-
sumes to make additions to the commands of
God, is in the sight of God just as disobedient
a servant, as the man who curtails them.

In the former instance of a similar miracle,
the Almighty had desired Moses, not merely to
take his rod, but to " smite the rock ;" in this,
however, God had desired him to take the rod,
but only to speak to the rock, and this we shall
find to be the key to the first act of the disobe-
dience of Moses.

10. And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation
together before the rock, and he said unto them. Hear
now, ye rebels ; must ive fetch you water out of this
rock ?

1 1 . A7id Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod

* Coloss. ii. 18.

NUMBERS XX. 7—13. 105

he smote the rock twice : and the water came out abun-
dantly, and the congregation drank, and their beasts
also.

Here, then, was a double sin. Moses had,
and probably with some parade, for it talks of
his " lifting up his hand," smitten the rock
twice, when desired only to speak to it, and he
had addressed the people in a manner well cal-
culated to exalt Aaron and himself, but certainly
not to glorify God : " Must we fetch you water
out of this rock ?" while the whole manner and
temper in which the miracle was performed,
" Hear now, ye rebels,"" was indicative of anything
rather than the holy meekness of a man of God.
Still, it is delightful to observe, that God's mercy
is not thwarted by man's disobedience. The
water not only came forth, but came forth abun-
dantly, although not bidden as God had com-
manded ; nevertheless the guilty performers of
this wonderful miracle cannot escape their justly-
merited punishment.

12. And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron,
Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes
of the children of Israel ; therefore ye shall not bring
this congregation into the land which I have given them.

13. This is the water of Meribah ; because the chil-
dren of Israel strove with the Lord, and he was sanc-
tified in them.

F O

106 NUMBERS XX. 7—13.

Alas ! liow painful a conclusion is here fore-
told, to sucli a life of labour and wandering, as
had been the lot of Moses, " Ye shall not bring
this congregation into the land which I have
given them." Yet such are the fruits of sin.
One of the holiest of God's servants was here
led into disobedience ; one of the meekest of
God's prophets was here betrayed into hastiness
and self-exultation ; he who had so long and so
watchfully held out against the tempter, was at
length surprised, and momentarily overcome.
We mourn for Moses, we mourn for the sinful-
ness and infirmity of the whole of our fallen race,
we mourn for ourselves. We dread lest, after
all our efforts, all the grace we have received,
all the poor imperfect labours we have achieved,
we should ourselves be but " castaways." Let
us, however, not despond. The sentence of
Moses was but an exclusion from an earthly
Canaan, that he might enter the sooner into
" the everlasting kingdom and joy of his Lord."
It was, indeed, a punishment, and one which he
no doubt felt severely, but he was thus, as the
apostle says, " Chastened, of the Lord, that he
might not be condemned with the world." So
let us view all earthly trials and disappointments.
They may be, they doubtless are, intended as
chastenings, painful, bitter chastenings, but they

NUMBERS XX. 14—29. 107

are not condemnation. " Wherefore doth a living-
man complain, a man for the punishment of his
sins ?" * He \vho loved his own, loveth them
unto the end, and if the Christian sufferer, look-
ing only to the blood and righteousness of his
Redeemer, in penitence and faith, be for a time
cast down, while wave after wave be permitted
thus, for purposes both of punishment and purifi-
cation, to pass over him, let him be assured,
that, bearing- the chastening in the spirit of child-
like meekness and confiding love, it shall, in the
language of our church, " turn to his profit, and
help him forward in the right way that leadeth
unto everlasting life." f

EXPOSITION XXVI.

Numbers xx. 14 — 29.

1 4 . And Moses sent messengers from Kadesh, unto
the k'uKj of Edom, Thus saith thy brother Israel, Thou
knoicest all the travel that hath befallen us :

15. How our fathers went down into Egypt, and loe
have dwelt in Egypt a long time : and the Egyptians
cexed us and our fathers.

* Laraen. iii. 39. f Visitation of the Sick.

108 NUMBERS XX. 14—29.

16. And when we cried unto the Lord, he heard our
voice, and sent an angel, and hath brought u^ forth out
of Egypt : and, behold, we are in Kadesh, a city in the
uttermost of thy border :

17. Let us jJdss, I jJfoy thee, through thy country :
we will not jJdss through the fields, or through the vine-
yards, neither will we drink of the water of the wells :
we will go by the king's high way, toe tvill not turn to
the right hand, nor to the left, until we have passed thy
borders.

18. And Edom said unto him. Thou shall not pass by
me, lest I come out against thee ivith the sword.

19. And the children of Israel said unto him, We
will go by the high way : and if I and my cattle drink
of thy water, then I will pay for it : I will only, with-
out doing anything else, go through on my feet.

20. And he said. Thou shall not go through. And
Edom came out against him with much peojjle, and with
a strong hand.

21. Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through
his border : wherefore Israel turned away from him.

The country of Edom lying directly in the
road of the Israelites to the promised land, it
might have been expected that they would have
been commanded to march at once across it,
and put to the sword all who should endeavour
to impede them. But again we are reminded
that God's ways are not as our ways, nor his
thoughts as our thoughts, and the Israelites are
directed to ask, and not to force a passage.

NUMBERS XX. 14—29. 109

Moses appears to have made this request with
much judgment, by laying before the Edomites
the wonderful interference of the Almighty in
behalf of his chosen people, and distinctly show-
ing that they were under the peculiar protection
and guidance of the Most High. Had the
Edomites been wise, they would, like Rahab, at
once have seen the advantage, and grasped at
the opportunity of establishing a friendship with
so powerful a people ; but they, with equal want
of policy and of kindness, refused the boon which
had been solicited, and for ever lost the oppor-
tunity of healing the original breach, between
Esau their progenitor, and Jacob the father of
the Israelites, and thus only hastened the fulfil-
ment of the patriarch's promise, " Be lord over
thy brethren, and let thy mother's sons bow down
to thee ; cursed be every one that curseth thee." *
So true is it, in almost every instance, that real,
heartfelt, unpretending kindness to our brethren,
is as certainly good policy as it is good Chris-
tianity ; and that the man who neglects it, not
only declines one of his highest duties, but for-
feits, at the same time, one of his best and most
valuable privileges.

22. And the children of Israel, even the whole con-
gregation, journeyed from Kadesh, and came unto mount
Hor.

* Gen. xxvii. 29.

110 NUMBERS XX. U— 29.

23. And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron in
mount Hor, by the coast of the land of Edom, saying,

24. Aaron shall be gathered unto his people : for
he shall not enter into the land which I have given unto
the children of Isi-ael, because ye rebelled against my
word at the water of Meribah.

Aaron is now to pay the forfeit of that unhal-
lowed act of disobedience, of which we have
lately read, and in which he, no doubt, fully
participated. You will observe, in furtherance of
the observations we have before made, (that
adding to God's commands, is as sinful a dis-
obedience, as diminishing them,) that it is here
spoken of by the Almighty himself as rebellion
against his word ; " Because ye rebelled against
my word at the water of Meribah." It is in these
days peculiarly necessary that we should attend
to this, when so many, under the appearance of
greater sanctity, and a more self-denying religion,
are engaged in the attempt to destroy, or at
least greatly to injure, that Christian liberty
wherewith Christ has made his people free ; the
liberty to run the way of God's commandments,
but not to endeavour to improve upon them, or
enlarge them, by the traditions of men. But to
continue the narrative,

25 . Tahe Aaron and Eleasar his son, and bring them
up unto mount Hor :

26. And strip Aaron of his garments, and put them

NUMBERS XX. 14-29. Ill

upon Eleazar Ms son ; and Aaron shall be gathered unto
his jjeople, and shall die there.

27. And Moses did as the Lord commanded : and
they ivent up into mount Hor, in the sight of all the
congregation.

28. And Moses stripped Aaron of his garments, and
])ut them upon Eleazar his son ; and Aaron died there
in the top of the inount : and Moses and Eleazar came
down from the mount.

29. And lohen all the congregation saw that Aaron
teas dead, they mourned for Aaron thirty days, even all
the house of Israel.

Such was the close of the long, and honoured
life of Aaron. With the departure of this good
and holy man, Moses had lost, probably, his last
surviving relative, and perhaps the sentence,
hard though it might appear, that he should not
set foot in the promised land, would be robbed
of much of its bitterness, by the afflictive visita-
tions that had lately thickened around him. It
is merciful, although it is at the same time deeply
painful, that as we advance in life, its strongest
attractions are thus permitted to drop off, and
its dearest relationships to be severed ; and as
we mourn, one by one, those whom we have most
loved, and honoured, and cherished here, we be-
come proportionably less anxious for the advan-
tages of so perishable a world, and less desirous of
its distinctions. They who, by enjoying them

112 NUMBERS XXI. 1— G.

with us, would have doubled our own enjoy-
ment, are no more ; those to whom they would
have given perhaps a holier and a purer plea-
sure than to ourselves, are removed beyond their
reach ; and we become proportionably indifferent
to that, of which there are now so few to share
with us. Happy, if as life thus fades, eternity
brightens ; blessed, if as we are loosening our
hold on everything here below, on all that is
seen and is temporal, we are clinging with a
stronger faith, and a more enduring hope, and
an increasing love, to those " things which are
not seen and are eternal."

EXPOSITION XXVII.
Numbers xxi. 1 — 6.

1 . And when king Arad the Canaanite, which dwelt
in the south, heard tell that Israel came by the loay of
the spies ; then he f ought against Israel, and took some
of them prisoners.

2. And Israel vowed a vow unto the Lord, and said,
If thou wilt indeed deliver this people into my hand,
then I will utterly destroy their cities.

3. And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Israel, and
delivered up the Canaanites ; and they utterly destroyed

NUMBERS XXI. 1—6. 113

them and their cities : and he called the name of the
place Hormah.

When we are here told that Israel went up
" by the way of the spies," we can hardly believe
that it was the road taken by the spies to Eshcol
eight and thirty years before, for that would have
led them due south, through the country of the
Amalekites, and they were now turning round
Edom to the south-east. To avoid this contra-
diction, therefore, it is better to render it, as the
septuagint translates it, as the name of a place,
that they went " by the way of Atharim." Here
they were at once involved in war ; the Edomites
had been content churlishly to refuse a passage,
but the king of Arad appears to have resolved
upon acting far more violently, and to have made
an unprovoked attack upon the Israelites, which
for the moment was successful. Israel, however,
having committed its cause to the Most High,
immediately triumphed over its enemies, and
utterly destroyed them ; or, at any rate, com-
menced that series of unexampled successes, and
judicial exterminations, which, it appears from a
future chapter, was afterwards carried to its com-
pletion, under the arms of Joshua.

4. And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way
of the Red Sea, to compass the land of Edom : and the
soul of the people was much discouraged because of the
way.

114 NUMBERS XXI. 1—6.

5. And the people sjmke against God, and against
Moses, Where/ore have ye hrought us up out of Egypt,
to die in the wilderness : for there is no bread, neither
is there any water, and our soid loatheth this light
bread.

6, And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people,
and they bit the people ; and much people of Israel
died.

We cannot be surprised that after eight and
thirty years of wandering, and just as the pro-
mised land appeared within their reach, the
Israelites should feel a deep and trying discourage-
ment at having to retrace a portion of their road
again, and to encompass the whole land of Edom,
instead of passing at once and directly through
it. But we must feel astonished, that after all
their experience of the goodness, the power, and
the mercy of God, discouragement should lead
them to repine, instead of bringing them nearer
in filial faith and dependence to the source of all
their blessings. We doubt not that there will
be seasons, even in the happiest Christian pil-
grimage, when the soul will be discouraged, and
even " much discouraged, because of the way."
When difficulties, which we had thought had
passed over, will re-appear — when temptations,
which we had hoped had been for ever van-
quished, will again rise up against us — when

NUMBERS XXI. 1—6. 115

sins, which we trusted we had forsaken, will once
more mar our path ; and these things will lead
us to feel a deep sensation of despondency, well
if it be not amounting almost to despair; we
shall be tempted to think that God cannot
pardon delinquencies so frequent and unpro-
voked, and that we shall certainly perish on the
journey, and never arrive at that journey's
blissful end. Let us be careful that such feelings
lead us not into temjjtation, that they do not
close our eyes and our hearts against the infinity
of God's mercy in Christ Jesus ; that they do not
teach us to forget that, " The blood of Jesus
Christ cleanseth from all sin ;" yes, a//," however
deep, however heinous, however oft-repeated, if it
be but faithfully and earnestly sought through the
power of the Holy Ghost, and if, through the
same promised aid, the sin be truly repented of,
and steadily and perseveringly forsaken. Per-
haps you may find it diflticult to timik so, but
remember that your thoughts are, blessed be
God, not the limits of his mercy, for has He
not himself declared, that " He is able to do
exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask
or think?"* Be not therefore "discouraged
because of the way," look to Him who was " the
Author," to be also " the Finisher of your faith,"
* Ephes. iii. 20.

116 NUMBERS XXI. i— G.

and you shall yet, under his divine and blessed
guidance, reach the haven where you would be.

In speaking of the discouragement of the Is-
raelites, we cannot but remark that there is some-
thing peculiarly aggravating in the language in
which they expressed it, when they even pre-
sumed to scoff at the bread sent down from
heaven : " Our soul loatheth this light bread."
Man " did eat angels' food," and was not satis-
fied ! Now, therefore, the anger of the Lord
was again kindled, and He who had spared them
when they asked for bread, and when they cried
for water, because these were the reasonable and
natural wants of man, destroyed them without
pity, when they complained of the bread and
water which God had given them. What a
lesson to many among us, who are dissatisfied
in the midst of plenty, and complaining though
surrounded by abundance ? well may we say
in the language of the christian poet,

" If half the breath thus idly spent.
To Heaven in supplication went.
Our grateful song would oftener be.
See what the Lord has done for me.''

NUMBERS XXI. 7—9. 117

EXPOSITION XXVIII.
Numbers xxi. 7 — 9.

7. Therefore the feople came to Moses, and said. We
have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord, anct
against thee : pray unto the Lord that he take away
the serpents from xis. And Moses prayed for the j^eople.

8. And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery
serpent, and set it upon a pole : and it shall come to
pass, that evei'y one that is bitten, when he looketh upon
it, shall live.

9. And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it
upon a pole, and it came to pass that if a serpent had
bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he
lived.

No sooner did the people, while smarting under
the deserved punishment of their murmurings,
confess their sin before the Almighty, than mercy
prevailed over judgment, and a remedy, a most
remarkable remedy, was immediately provided.
This was no other, as we have just seen, than the
brazen serpent, erected, at the command of God>
by Moses, and offering an infallible cure to every
wounded and serpent-bitten Israelite, who looked
upon it. The peculiarities of this remedy were
very extraordinary ; it did not remove at once

118 NUMBERS XXI. 7—9.

and for ever, the fiery serpents who stung the
people, but it healed the suffering- people them-
selves. But there was yet again another pecu-
liarity ; it did not heal the whole congregation,
or necessarily even the whole number of those
who were bitten. It is expressly stated, " that
if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld
the serpent of brass, he lived." It was, therefore,
not sufficient, that the brazen serpent was erected ;
it was not sufficient that it had the power to
heal ; it was not even sufficient that the man
who had been bitten had need of healing, or was
desirous of healing ; it was essential to the cure,
that the wounded man should behold the serpent
of brass, and in looking upon it he lived.

We have thus dwelt upon this most singular
and miraculous remedy, because our Lord Jesus
Christ, in the pages of the New Testament, refers
to it so plainly and so pointedly, as a type of
himself. These are his own words, as recorded
by St. John : " And as Moses lifted up the ser-
pent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of
man be lifted up : that whosoever believeth in
Him should not perish, but have eternal life." *
It is impossible to imagine anything more beau-
tifully simple and yet more satisfactorily com-
plete. In this type was contained, as it were,
* John iii. 14, 15.

NUMBERS XXL 7—9. 119

a miniature of the whole Gospel of Christ. Does
the sinner inquire the way of salvation ? here is
an answer which the most uneducated cannot
misunderstand, or the most learned improve
upon. Here is the plain and simple Gospel
divested of all the jargon of the schools, and all
the additions of a blind and superstitious church.
There is no substitution of works for faith, there
is no addition of works to faith, as the instru-
mental cause of our salvation. It is the " looking
to Jesus," it is the fixing the eye of a trusting-
faith upon Him, upon all that He has done, and
all that He has suffered, like the gaze of the
wounded Israelite, which alone affects the cure.

It matters not, how much human systems may,
from time to time, have added to this wonderful,
this miraculous method of healing, which our
Lord has himself proclaimed. If we are really
in earnest in the salvation of our souls, we shall
never be satisfied without going back to first
principles; and where should we seek those
principles, but from the lips of the Divine
Founder of our religion himself? He has pro-
claimed that, " As Moses lifted up the serpent
in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man
be lifted up." No one can suppose that the
parallel began and ended in both objects being

120 NUMBERS XXI. 7—9.

raised upon a pole, or a cross of wood ! This
is too absurd even for the most prejudiced.
Surely the verse that follows, sufficiently proves,
that the words, " As Moses," implied, for a
similar purpose, and as far as the antitype
could agree with the type, to be effected in a
similar manner, or our Lord never could have
said, " That whosoever believeth'in him should not
perish, but have eternal life." We learn, then,
this great, this blessed, this saving truth, that
as the wounded Israelites found health and life
only, by looking upon the brazen serpent, " so,"
in all asres, and under all circumstances, shall
the sinner who, directed by the sweetly prevail-
ing influences of the Spirit of God, fixes the eye
of a true and living faith upon a crucified Re-
deemer, find pardon, and life, and peace.

Blessed be God, for a simple Gospel ! Blessed
be God, that the king'^s highway is so plain that
" the wayfaring man, though a fool, shall not err
therein." We want not the glosses of antiquity*
we need not the accumulated labours of bygone
ages to teach us the way of salvation : we desire
not to slack our thirst at the polluted streams,
when we can thus stand at the bright and sparkling
fountain, and " with joy draw water out of the
wells of salvation." May we as individuals, as a

NUMBERS XXII. 1—14. 121

family, as a nation, never forget that " the Bible,
and the Bible only, is the religion of Pro-
testantism."

[Here may be read from verse 10, to the end of
the chapter.']

EXPOSITION XXIX.

Numbers xxii. 1 — 14.

1. And the children of Israel set forward, and pitched
in the plains of Moab, on this side Jordan by Jericho.

2. And Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel
had done to the Amorites.

3. And Moab was sore afraid of the people, because
they were many : and Moab was distressed because of
the cJiildren of Israel.

4. And Moab said unto the elders of Midian, Now
shall this company lick up all that are round about us,
as the ox licketh up the grass of the field. And Balak
the son of Zippor was king of the Moabites at that
time.

.0. He sent messengers therefore unto Balaam the son
of Bear, to Pethor, which is by the river of the land of
the children of his people, to call him, saying, Behold,
there is a people come out from Egypt : behold, they
cover the face of the earth, and they abide over against
me.

122 NUMBERS XXII. 1—14.

6. Come now, therefore, I jn-at/ thee, curse me this
peo2)le,for they are too mighty for me: pei'adventure
I shall prevail, that we may smite them, and that I may
drive them out of the land : for I toot that he whom
thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is
cursed.

This is the commencement of a very instructive
and remarkable history ; one, indeed, of the most
singular incidents that befell the Israelites through-
out their long and wonderful wanderings. They
Avere now just emerging from the wilderness, but
the fame of their numbers and of their prowess
had already preceded them, and no sooner did
they peaceably encamp on the plains of Moab,
than its foolish and idolatrous sovereign takes
the most energetic means for their destruction.
No doubt this was but a natural effort of self-
preservation, but had this distressed and sorely-
affrighted king only used the common precau-
tion first to inquire what were the intentions of
the Israelites, before he engaged so rashly and
so hopelessly against them, he might have been
spared both much of suffering and sin. To us,
who are admitted, through the pages of Re-
velation, into many of the secret counsels of
the Most High, it is obvious that Balak the
son of Zippor, had as little to fear from the
Israelites, as he had to hope from the incanta-

NUMBERS XXII. 1—14. 123

tions of Balaam. For this was the command of
the Almighty delivered at the present season to
Moses, " Distress not the Moabites, neither
contend with them in battle ; for I will not give
thee of their land for a possession, because I have
given Ar unto the children of Lot for a pos-
session." * Owing, therefore, to their relation-
ship to " just Lot," the Moabites, although they
had become entirely an idolatrous people, and
had cast off their allegiance to the God of their
fathers, were to be respected, and Balak had
really nothing to fear. Not, however, aware of
this, he determines to lose no time in compassing
the destruction of the dreaded multitudes who
were advancing, and for this purpose sends a
very considerable distance, even into the land
of Mesopotamia, to secure the aid of a celebrated
magician whose curse was supposed to be irre-
sistible. The general opinion of this man Balaam,
is, that he had once been a prophet of Jehovah,
but had been cast aside for his covetousness and
love of gain, and had therefore betaken himself
to those arts, which have in all ages been prac-
tised in the East, to the ruin and delusion of
their followers.

7. And the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian
departed with the rewards of divination in their hand ;
* Deut. ii. 9.

G 2

124 NUMBERS XXII. 1 — 14.

and they came unto Balaam, and spake unto him the
wo7'ds of Baluk.

8. And he said unto them. Lodge here this niyht,
and I will bring you word again, as the Lord shall
speak unto me : And the princes of Moab abode with
Balaam.

9. And God came unto Balaam, and said. What men
are these with thee ?

10. And Balaam said unto God, Balak the son of
Zippor, king of Moab, hath sent unto me, saying,

1 1 . Behold, there is a people come out of Egypt,
which covereth the face of the earth : come now, curse
me them ; peradventure I shall be able to overcome
them, and drive them out.

12. And God said unto Balaam, Thou shalt not go
with them : thou shalt not curse the 2jeople : for they
are blessed.

13. And Balaam rose up in the morning, and said
unto the princes of Balak, Get you into your land : for
the Lord refuseth to give me leave to go with you.

14. And the princes of Moab rose up, and they went
unto Balak, and said, Balaam refuseth to come with us.

Nothing can commence better than the conduct
of Balaam, as revealed to us in this passage.
The princes of Moab arrive, and they do not
come empty-handed, for we are expressly told,
that they took " the rewards of divination in
their hand," evidently, therefore, well knowing
the chai-acter of him with whom they had to do ;
for an apostle tells us, that Balaam " loved the

NUMBERS XXIT. 1—14. 125

wao;es of unrio-hteousness." * Yet Balaam resists
the temptation, consults the Almighty, and acts
promptly and decidedly upon his command.
" Thou shall not go with them." Perhaps we
might be a little disposed to cavil at the un-
courteous method in which the princes of Moab
were dismissed, " Get you into your own land,
for the Lord refuseth to give me leave to go with
you," as conveying more than meets the ear ; for
surely such a reply marks rather the hasty
obedience of an unwilling mind, fearful of trust-
ing itself to reflection, lest its momentary good
feeling should give way, than the calm and settled
resolution of one who loves the command, while
he obeys it, because he loves the Father, from
whose lips it proceeds. " The Lord refuseth to
give me leave," almost expresses the reluctant
feeling with which the refusal is acquiesced in.
May God grant us a willing, ready, cheerful
obedience, that He " who alone canst order the
unruly wills and affections of sinful men may
enable us to love the things which He commandeth,
as well as to desire that which He doth promise ;
that so among the sundry and manifold changes
of the world, our hearts may surely there be
fixed where true joys are to be found, through
Jesus Christ our Lord."

* 2 Peter ii. 15.

126 NUMBERS XXII. 15—27.

EXPOSITION XXX.

Numbers xxii. 15 — 27.

15. And Balak sent yet again princes, more, and more
honourable than they.

16. A7id they came to Balaam, and said to him. Thus
saith Balak the son of Zippor, Let nothing, I pray thee,
hinder thee from coming unto me :

17. For I will promote thee unto very great honour,
and I loill do whatsoever thou sayest unto me : come,
therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people.

Balaam had, as we have already seen, resisted
the first temptation, and obeyed, however re-
luctantly and heartlessly, the command of the
Most High. But our great spiritual enemy
seldom rests satisfied with one efibrt, or one
defeat ; he knows too well that the citadel which
resists a first attack, will often capitulate upon
a second summons. Even in the case of our
divine and perfect Master, three times was He
required to triumph over the tempter, before that
tempter departed from Him ; and even then, it
was but " for a season." Let us, then, be careful
not to be thrown ofi" our guard by a single vic-
tory, for experience will teach us, that we are

NUMBERS XXII. 15—27. 127

never more liable to be circumvented by the
toils, or overcome by the arms of Satan, than
when we are reposing in all the conscious supe-
riority of a hardly-achieved triumph.

18. And Balaam answered and said unto the servants
of Balak, If Balak ivoidd give me his house full of silver
and gold, I cannot go beyond the word of the Lord my
God, to do less or more.

19. Now therefore, I pray you, tarry ye also here this
night, that I may know what the Lord will say unto me
more,

Alas ! for Balaam, that a reply commenced
so wisely, should terminate so wickedly and so
foolishly ! What the Lord should say unto him
more ! Why what could the Almighty say
more ? Had He not distinctly declared, " Thou
shalt not go with them," and is God " a man
that He should lie, or the son of man that He
should repent ?" No, Balaam vainly hoped that
God would say something less, and bring that
within the bounds of possibility, upon which
Balaam had set his heart so strongly, and which
the Almighty had already forbidden so decidedly.

20. And God came unto Balaam at night, and said
unto him. If the men come to call thee, rise up, and go
with them : but yet the tvord which I shall say imto
thee, that shalt thou do.

128 NUMBERS XXII. 15—27.

Here the worldly-minded prophet had his
desire, as Solomon says, "The fool is answered,
according to his folly." The Almighty gives
him a conditional permission, and observe dis-
tinctly, that it was only conditional, " If the
men come to call thee," It is quite certain that
the men did not come to call him, or he would
of course have pleaded tltat in extenuation, when
the Lord afterwards so strongly chode with him
for going. Nevertheless he went, and as might
have been expected, his disobedience was his
ruin.

21. And Balaam rose up in the morning, and saddled
his ass, and went with the princes of Moab.

22. And God's anger was kindled because he went :
and the angel of the Lord stood in the way for an ad-
versary against him. Now he was riding upon his ass,
and his two servants were with him.

23. A?id the ass saw the angel of the Lord standing
in the way, and his sword drawn in his hand : and the
ass turned aside out of the way, and went into the f eld :
and Salaam smote the ass, to turn her into the way.

24. But the angel of the Lord stood in a jicith of the
vineyards, a wall being on this side, and a wall on that
side.

25. And when the ass saw the angel of the Lord,
she thrust herself unto the wall, and crushed Balaam's
foot against the wall : and he smote her again.

26. And the angel of the Lord went further, and

NUMBERS XXII. 15—27. 129

stood in a narrow place, where was no ivay to turn
either to the right hand or to the left.

27. And when the ass saw the angel of the Lord, she
fell down under Balaam : and Balaam's anger was
kindled, and he stnote the ass with a staff.

The wisdom of the ass was evidently greater
than that of his Master ; doubtless because the
Lord had opened his eyes, as He afterwards did
his mouth. Where the Almighty is pleased to
open the eyes or the mouth, it little matters
what the natural and original powers are ; " Out
of the mouth of habes and sucklings hast thou
perfected praise." Perhaps the whole incident
was chiefly intended to teach the apostate pro-
phet, that man, when left to himself, is as blind
as the lowest animal, and that all our senses are
so completely in the hands of the Most High,
that Balaam, who was now going expressly to
curse Israel, should have no power whatever to
do so, but should simply be an instrument in
the hands of the Almighty of blessing them
altogether.

The very fact, which is here so distinctly
stated, " And God's anger was kindled because
he went," we think proves that the interpretation
which we have given, of the conditional nature
of the Almighty's permission to Balaam, is the
true one ; for had God offered an unconditional

g5

130 NUMBERS XXII. 28—41.

permission to the prophet, it is out of the ques-
tion to suppose, that the anger of the Almighty
would have been kindled against Balaam because
he went.

EXPOSITION XXXI.

Numbers xxii. 28 — 41.

28. And the Lord opened the month of the ass, and
she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee,
that thou hast smitten me these three times ?

29. And Balaam said unto the ass, Because thou
hast mocked me : I woidd there were a sword in mine
hand, for now would I kill thee.

30. And the ass said unto Balaam, Atn not I thine
ass, upon which thou hast ridden ever since I ivas thine
unto this day ? was I ever wont to do so unto thee ?
And he said, Nay.

31. Then the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and
he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the way, and
his sword drawn in his hand : and he howed down his
head, and fell flat on his face.

32. And the angel of the Lord said unto him. Where-
fore hast thou smitten thine ass these three times ? he-
hold, I went out to withstand thee, because thy way is
perverse before me :

NUMBERS XXII. 28-41. 131

33. And the ass saw me, and turned from me these
three times : unless she had turned from me, surely now
also I had slain thee, and saved her alive.

The whole of this narrative is so evidently
miraculous, that we have only to believe the fact
as it is literally stated by the historian. To the
humble reader of God's word, this will never be
a difficulty, since He who created all things could
as easily create a voice out of the mouth of an
ass, as out of the mouth of a man. It was
enough, that the Almighty, for wise and merciful
purposes, willed that Balaam should be thus
" rebuked for his iniquity ;" and at once in the
language of the apostle, " The dumb ass, speaking
with man's voice, forbad the madness of the
prophet." *

34. And Balaam said unto the angel of the Lord:
I have sinned ; for I knew not that thou stoodest in
the way against me : now therefore, if it displease thee,
I will get me hack again.

35. And the angel of the Lord said unto Balaam, Go
with the men : but only the word that T shall speak
unto thee, that thou shalt speak. So Balaa?n ivent loith
the princes of Balak.

It appears probable, from the language of the
angel, that this was the uncreated angel, " the

* 2 Peter ii. 16.

132 NUMBERS XXII. 28—41.

angel of the covenant," the Lord Jesus Christ.
For we cannot conceive any lower, or created,
being-, assuming this air and language of supreme
authority, " Only the word that I shall sj^eak
unto thee, that thou shalt speak." Balaam then
had at length a free permission to go, as he
desired, for we do not consider the command,
" Only the word that I shall speak unto thee,
that thou shalt speak," as a condition, but as an
obligation, from which Balaam could not escape,
that he was, in fact, as much compelled to utter
the words, supernaturally put into his mouth,
as the trumpet is obliged to give sound to the
notes which are blown into it. Balaam went,
therefore, hand-tied and tongue-tied, unable to
speak what he desired, and therefore equally
unable to merit the honours and the rewards for
which he pined : and the whole remainder of
his history presents to us the sad and melancholy
picture of a hardened and covetous heart, with a
shrewd and enlightened head, struggling, but
vainly struggling, against the power of Omni-
potence.

36. And when Balak heard that Balaam was come,
he went out to meet him nnto a city of Moah, which is
in the border of Arnon, which is in the utmost coast.

37. And Balak said unto Balaam, Did I not earnestly
send unto thee to call thee ? wherefore earnest thou not

NUMBERS XXII. 28—41. 133

unto me ? am I not able indeed to ji^'omote thee tu
honour ?

38. And Balaam said unto Balak, Lo, I am come
unto thee : have I now any jiower at all to say any-
thing ? the icord that God putteth in my mouth, that
shall I sjjea/c.

39. And Balaam went with Balak, and they came
unto Kirjah-huzoth.

40. And Balak offered oxen and sheep, and sent to
Balaam, and to the pirinces that were with him.

41. And it came to p) ass on the morroio, that Balak
took Balaam, and brought him tip info the high pjlaces
of Baal, that thence he might see the utmost part of
the people.

We have here the meeting between Balak and
Balaam, which, so far as under his peculiar cir-
cumstances any earthly distinctions would avail
to do so, must have gratified the prophet. But
liis mind was far too much enlightened with regard
to his precise position, to permit hira to enter-
tain much hope of the proffered honours : " Have
I any power at all to say anything ?" is his mor-
tifying inquiry.

" When a man's ways please the Lord, he
maketh even his enemies to be at peace with
him," and may we not add, When a man's ways
are displeasing unto the Lord even his friends
cannot help him. Such was the case with
Balaam ; Balak boasted, that he had power to

134 NUMBERS XXIII. 1—12.

promote him to honour, but the prophet might
have truly answered, Thou canst have no power
at all respecting me, except it be given thee
from on high. So essential is it, that the blessing
of God should be the first thing sought in all
that we undertake, that " all our works may be
begun, continued and ended in God ;" for so
only can we expect that their progress shall be
prosperous, and their result successful.

EXPOSITION XXXII.

Numbers xxiii. 1 — 12.

1. And Balaam said unto Balak, Build me here
seven altars, and prepare me here seven oxen and seven
rams.

2. And Balak did as Balaam had spoken : and Balak
and Balaam offered on every altar a bullock and a ram.

3. And Balaam said unto Balak, Stand by thy burnt
offering, and I will go : peradventure the Lord will
come to meet me : and whatsoever he shewefh me I will
tell thee. And he went to an high place.

4. And God met Balaam : and he said unto him,
I have prepared seven altars, and I have offered upon
every altar a bullock and a ram.

5. And the Lord put a word in Balaam's mouth.

NUMBERS XXIII. 1—12. 135

and said, Return unto Balak, and thus thou shalt
speak,

6. And he returned unto him, and la, he stood by his
biirnt sacrijice, he, and all the princes of Moab.

We have here the account of the first effort
made by Balaam in the service of his new
master ; he is not content with one altar and a
single sacrifice, but asks at once for seven bul-
locks, seven rams, and seven altars ? He is
resolved that if he fail, it shall, at least, not be
from any want of extravagance nd grandeur in
his offerings ; and as they were to be made at
the expense of another, this was not a difficult
or an unnatural piece of liberality on the part of
the covetous prophet. It is quite clear that
Balaam fully hoped to be no loser by this ex-
penditure, for the first thing he says, when he
meets with the Almighty, is, " I have prepared
seven altars, and I have offered upon every altar
a bullock and a ram." The Almighty conde-
scends not to notice his worse than contemptible
offerings, for the word of God has declared,
" The sacrifice of the wicked is an ahomination
to the Lord," and he therefore proceeds at once
to desire Balaam to return to Balak, and adds,
" Thus thou shalt speak." There was no choice,
no opportunity for the prophet to add or to di-
minish aught of the sentence entrusted to him ;
7

136 NUMBERS XXIII. 1—12.

lie was compelled to be the herald of his own dis-
comfiture and disgrace, and where he would most
cordially and most eagerly have hurled his curse,
there he was obliged to bestow his blessing.

7. And he took up his ■parahle, and said, Balak the
king of Moah hath brought me from Aram, out of the
ynountains of the east, saying. Come, curse me Jacob,
and come, defy Israel.

8. How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed?
or how shall I defy, whom the Lord hath not defied ?

9. For from the top of the rocks I see him and from
the hills I behold him : lo, the people shall dwell alone,
and shall not be reckoned among the nations.

10. Who can count the dust of Jacob, and the number
of the fourth part of Israel ? let me die the death of
the righteous, and let my last end be like his !

1 1 . And Balak said unto Balaam, What hast thou
done unto me ? I took thee to curse mine enemies, and,
behold, thou hast blessed them altogether.

12. And he answered and said, Must I not take heed
to speak that which the Lord hath put in my mouth ?

_ How wonderful and beautiful a prophecy was
this of the remarkable fate of Israel ! " The
people shall dwell alone, and shall not be
reckoned among the nations." From that day
even to the present hour it has never been fal-
sified ; for centuries, Israel dwelt distinctly,
separate, and alone; her city and her temple,
" the joy of the whole earth ;" her warriors, her

NUMBERS XXIII. 1—12. 137

judges, her poets, infinitely surpassing all that
human nature has elsewhere produced, for they
alone spake, and acted, and wrote with the im-
parted wisdom of Omnipotence. And now, al-
though her glory has passed away, and her
sovereignty as a nation has long lived only in
the records of history, and she has for centuries
been scattered among all the people of the earth,
yet her fate remains unchanged, she still dwells
alone, even in the most crowded capitals, and
amidst the densest population. In all the won-
derful changes he has undergone, the Jew has
never been intermingled or confounded with the
people among whom he dwells, and it may yet
be said, " has never been reckoned among the
nations." Wonderful proof of the certainty of
the Almighty's unchanged and unchangeable
prophecies ! The words here spoken by the side
of the seven altars in the land of Moab, more
than three thousand years ago, may at this hour
be verified in the streets of almost every me-
tropolis in Europe. While in the person of
every Jew, in his distinctive features and marked
characteristics, a standing miracle is presented
to every succeeding age and nation in the world,
which infidelity itself has never yet discovered
the method to gainsay or destroy.

The true Christian, however, delights to look

138 NUMBERS XXIII. 13—30.

still farther than this, and by learning the ful-
filment of the Almighty's predictions, to cling-
more closely to the certain accomplishment of
his promises, and to rejoice in the hope that
there is yet good in store for Israel, and that
the Lord hath not forgotten his people, but will
still call back " his banished ones," and fulfil
his own astonishing and merciful prediction, " I
will take the children of Israel from amons: the
heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather
them on every side, and bring them into their
own land : . . . . My tabernacle also shall be
with them ; yea, I will be their God, and they
shall be my people." *

EXPOSITION XXXIII.

Numbers xxiii. 13 — 30.

13. And Bulak said unto him, Come, I pray thee,
with me unto another place, from tvhence thou mayest
see them : thou shalt see but the utmost pta^t of them,
and shalt not see them all : and curse me them from
thence.

1-1. And he brought him into the field of Zophim, to

* Ezek. xx.'O'ii. 21, 2/.

NUMBERS XXIII. 13—30, 139

the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars, and offered a
bullock and a ram on every altar.

15. And he said unto Balak, Stand here by thy burnt
offering, ichile I meet the Lord yonder.

16. And the Lord met Balaam, and put a word in
his mouth, and said. Go again unto Balak, and say
thus,

17. And when he came to him, behold, he stood by
his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab toith him.
And Balak said unto him, What hath the Lord spoken ?

18. And he took up his parable, and said. Rise up,
Balak, and hear ; hearken unto me, thou son of Zippor :

19. God is not a man, that he shoidd lie; neither
the son of man, that he should repent : hath he said,
and shall he not do it ? or hath he spoken, and shall he
not make it good ?

20. Behold, I have received commandment to bless :
and he hath blessed ; and I cannot reverse it.

Such is the manner in which Balaam heralds
in the second blessing which he is compelled to
pronounce upon God's chosen people. How
boldly does he speak of the unchangeableness of
God ! how truly and beautifully of his character !
" God is not a man, that He should lie ; neither
the son of man, that He should repent." Is it
possible, that this is the same person, who but a
few days before could ask the princes of Moab
to wait, while he " should see what the Lord
God should say unto him more !" Yes, such

J 10 NUMBERS XXIII. 13—30.

was his inconsistency, the common inconsistency
of the ungodly, that while his better reason was
convinced, his practice was uninfluenced, and
though he could utter a faint aspiration, " Let
me die the death of the righteous," he had nei-
ther faith nor inclination to live the same life,
to pursue the same path, and to be guided by
the same blessed and holy principles ; " With the
heart man belie veth unto righteousness," and
Balaam's heart had no part or lot in the belief,
which his reason recognised and his lips main-
tained.

21. He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither
hath he seen perverseness in Israel : the Lord his God
is with him, and the shout of a Mng is among them.

22. God brought them out of Egypt ; he hath as it
were the strength of an unicorn.

23. Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob,
neither is there any divination against Israel : accord-
ing to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel,
What hath God wrought !

24. Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion,
and lift up himself as a young lion : he shall not lie
down until he eat of the prey, and drink the blood of
the slain.

25. And Balak said unto Balaam, Neither cwse
them at all, nor bless them at all.

26. But Balaam answered and said unto Balak, Told
not I thee, saying. All that the Lord speaketh, that I
must do ?

NUMBERS XXIII. 13—30. 141

27. And Balak said unto Balaam, Come, I pray thee,
I will bring thee unto another place ; peradventure it
will please God that thou may est curse me them from
thence.

28. And Balak brought Balaam unto the top of
Feor, that looketh toward Jeshimon.

29. And Balaam said tmto Balak, Build me here
seven altars, and prepare me here seven bullocks and
seven rams.

30. And Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered
a bidlock and a ram on every altar.

In the blessing thus pronounced by Balaam
upon Israel, he is compelled to give the Al-
mighty's reason for his protection of his chosen
people, which he does in the remarkable de-
claration, " He hath not beheld iniquity in
Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in
Israel." To us, on the contrary, it would appear
that Israel's history was almost composed of
iniquity and perverseness ; that sin followed sin,
and rebellion succeeded rebellion, throughout
every page of their sad wanderings. No doubt
all that is intended by this declaration is, that
compared with the abandoned and idolatrous
nations by which they were surrounded, Israel
was comparatively a holy people, and, at the least,
free in general from that abominable sin of idol
worship, that peculiar iniquity which God hateth.

142 NUMBERS XXIII. 13—30.

and into which all other nations of the world
had by this time fallen. It is a happiness to
know, that where the heart is really right with
God, where the strong and habitual principle
under which we act is the desire to live in all
holy obedience to God's glory, where the general
tenor of the conduct is regulated by the Divine
commands, God will not judge as the world
judges, and consider every deviation from the
strictest line of his commandments, an unpardon-
able sin, and a sentence of eternal banishment
from his redeemed family. Well has David said,
in reference to this, " If thou, Lord, shouldest be
extreme to mark what is done amiss, O Lord,
who could stand ?" This, whilst it holds out not
the slightest encouragement to Antinomianism,
affords much comfort to the penitent and deeply
sorrowing sinner. It shows him, that there is
pardon, that there is grace, that there is a way
open to every repentant prodigal, to return to
the arms of a Father, who has never utterly dis-
carded him, never ceased to view him as a son,
although a guilty one. Yes, blessed be God,
none ever sought his face in vain ; the man whose
sins have banished him the farthest from the face
of the Almighty, shall yet, if he come in peni-
tence and faith, find Him willing to welcome

NUMBERS XXIV. 1—13. 143

bim, for the sake of the great atoning sacrifice,
and the merits of that Saviour who ever liveth
to make intercession for him.

EXPOSITION XXXIV.

Numbers xxiv. 1 — 13.

1 . And when Balamn saw that it pleased the Lord to
bless Israel, he went not, as at other times, to seek for
enchantments, but he set his face toward the wilderness.

2. And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel
abiding in his tents according to their tribes : and the
Spii'it of God came upon him.

3. And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the
son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are open
hath said :

4. He hath said, lohich heard the words of God,
rvhich saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a
trance, but having his eyes open :

5. Hole goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy taber-
nacles, O Israel !

6. As the valleys are they spread forth, as gardens
by the river's side, as the trees of lign aloes ivhich the
Lord hath planted, and as cedar trees beside the waters.

7 . He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and
his seed shall be in many waters, and his king shall be
higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted.

Ill NUMBERS XXIV. 1—13.

8. God brought him forth out of Egypt ; he hath an
it vwre the strength of an unicorn : he shall eat vp th e
nations his enemies, and shall break their bones, and
pierce them through with his arrows.

9. He couched, he lay down us a lion, and as a great
lion : ivho shall stir him vj) ? Blessed is he that blesseth
thee, and cursed is he that curseth thee.

The farther we advance in this remarkable
history, the more we see the extreme folly and
wickedness of the parties concerned. Balak re-
solving- to obtain his end, and if possible to pro-
cure the curse of Balaam upon Israel, still per-
severes in his efforts and his sacrifices. Balaam
does much the same, but evidently far more
hopelessly. We read at the commencement of
the passage, that he did not go, on this occasion,
as he had on the two preceding, " to seek for
enchantments," but finding that he was totally
foiled, resigned himself at length into the hands
. of God. But this declaration, that he had hi-
therto gone to seek enchantments, is sufficient to
show us, that he was not willingly a follower of
Jehovah, and that when he spake the words of
the Lord, he spake them, as we have seen, by
compulsion, and simply because he was irresistibly
impelled to do so. We are told that " the Spirit
of God came upon him," and thus with his
mighty power constrained him to bless, where
6

NUMBERS XXIV. 1—13. 145

every desire and thought of his own Avicked
heart was engaging him to curse. He makes,
indeed, a mighty boast, a twice repeated decla-
ration, that he was a man " whose eyes were
open," but alas! how imperfectly, how darkly were
they so ! His eyes were opened to see the future
prospects and glories of Israel, but they were
closed to all the iniquities of his own conduct,
and the miseries of his own fate. Such will, at
all times, be the state of those who have know-
ledge without faith, a perception of Divine truth,
but no love to that blessed and holy Being from
whom it flows. It is difficult to conceive a more
fearful state than his, who possesses an enlight-
ened mind, and an unchanged and unholy heart.
His life will be, like Balaam's, a struggle be-
tween his desires and his convictions, and his
death, like that of the apostate prophet, only the
sentence of eternal banishment from all joy, all
hope, all peace.

10. And Balak's anger was kindled against Balaam,
and he smote his hands together : and Balak said unto
Balaam, I called thee to ciirse mine enemies, and, be-
hold, thou hast altogether blessed them these three
times.

11. Therefore now fee thou to thy 'place : I thought
to promote thee unto great honour ; but, lo, the Lord
hath kept thee back from honour.

H

146 NUMBERS XXIV. 1—13.

12. And Balaam said unto BalaJi, Spake I not also
to thy messengers which thou sentest unto me, saying,

13. If Balak would give me his house full of silver
and gold, I cannot go beyond the commandment of the
Lord, to do either good or bad of mine own mind : but
what the Lord saith, that will I speak ?

Yes, here was the confession of Balaam him-
self, to the truth to which we have so often re-
ferred, " I cannot go beyond the commandment
of the Lord to do either good or bad of mine
own mind ;" not, " I will not," but, " I cannot ;"
I am restrained by a power over which I have no
control, and by which I have been compelled to say
all that I have said, or shall say. Thus was the
covetous prophet " kept back from honour," and
dismissed, poor as he came, to his native land.

How different would have been the feelings
with which Balaam would have performed his
solitary homeward journey, had he, like Moses,
in a far higher sense than any with which his
worldly mind was acquainted, really " had respect
to the recompense of the reward," and been con-
tent to " choose rather to suffer affliction with
the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures
of sin for a season, esteeming the reproach of
Christ greater riches than the treasures" of
Balak. Then would the exulting language of
his heart have been, Thank God for thus per-

NUMBERS XXIV. 14—25. 14/

mitting me to serve Him ; thank God for
making me the instrument in his hands of im-
parting blessings to his chosen people; thank
God that He has kept me back from honour,
which would only have been a snare and a dis-
grace, and that He has counted me worthy to be
employed in his service, and to suffer shame for
his sake. Of how little value would have been
the " house full of silver and gold," compared with
the heart filled with such sentiments and such
rejoicings. May we rest satisfied with nothing
short of being indeed the servants of God, the
fi-eemen of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,
not with eye service, but delighting above all
things to do his will and to promote his glory ;
and this not of necessity, but willingly, and as
enabled to say, on every occasion, whether of
doing, or of suffering, with the psalmist of old,
" I delight to do thy will, O my God."*

EXPOSITION XXXV.

Numbers xxiv. 14 — 25.

14. And now, behold, I go unto my people : come,
therefore, and I loill advertise thee what this peo])le
shall do to thy people in the latter days.
* Psalm xl. 8.

H 2

148 NUMBERS XXIV. 14— 2J.

15. And he took vp his parahle, and said, Balaam
the son of Beor hath said, and the man lohose eyes are
open hath said :

IG. He hath said, which heard the ivords of God,
and knew the hioioledge of the most High, which saw
the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but
having his eyes oj)en :

17. I shall see him, but not now : I shall behold him,
but not nigh : there shall come a Star out of Jacob,
and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite
the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of
Sheth.

18. And Edom shall be a possession, Seir also shall
be a possession for his enemies ; and Israel shall do
valiantly.

19. Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have do-
minion, and shall destroy him that remaineth of the
city.

20. And when he looked on Amalek, he took up his
parable, and said, Amalek was the first of the nations ;
but his latter end shall be that he perish for ever.

21. And he looked on the Kenites, arid took vp his
parable, and said, Strong is thy dwelling'place, and
thou puttest thy nest in a rock.

22. Nevertheless the Kenite shall be wasted, until
Asshur shall carry thee away captive.

23. And he took upt his parable, and said, Alas, who
shall live when God doeth this ?

24. And ships shall come from the coast of Chittim,
and shall afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber, and he
also shall perish for ever.

25. And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to
his place : and Balak also went his way.

NUxMBERS XXIV. 14—25. 149

Balaam having no longer anything to hope or
fear from Balak, volunteers to tell him, before
he leaves him, what should be the final destiny of
his people; and he does so, by assuring him that
this nation, which now lay tented in the plains
before them, should " smite the corners," or, as
the marginal reading gives it, should " smite
through the princes of Moab," and destroy all
the children of Seth ; that they " should have
dominion," and finally possess themselves of that
and all the adjacent countries. But in the midst
of this prophecy, which might otherwise possess
but little interest, except to him whose fate it
sealed, there is an astonishing reference to ano-
ther, and far more remarkable subject, even to
the coming of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
" There shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a
Sceptre shall rise out of Israel." In the language
of prophecy, a star represented the Lord Jesus
Christ, for He alone has said, " I am the bright
and morning star." * In these words, therefore,
there is a distinct prediction, more than fourteen
hundred years before the event, of the rising of
the star of Bethlehem, and of the glories which
it should shed upon our world. Like Abraham,
therefore, Balaam was permitted to see the day
of Christ, through the long vista of intervening
* Rev. xxii. 16.

150 NUMBERS XXIV. 14—25.

ages ! Great and wonderful privilege ! But we,
probably, nay certainly, are unable to add, as in
the case of the patriarch Abraham, " that he saw
it and was glad" There was nothing to gladden
the heart of Balaam in the anticipations of a
coming Saviour ; nothing in which he could
rejoice, who was but the unwilling instrument
in the hands of Him from whom that Saviour
came. We might almost gather what was the
state of Balaam's feelings on this great subject,
by the peculiar manner in which he announces
it ; "I shall see Him, but not now ; I shall
behold Him, but not nigh." We would not
strain the language of Scripture to make it imply
more than was intended, which might only be to
infer the long lapse of time before the advent of
the Saviour, of whom he spake. But when we
remember the character of this apostate prophet,
when we call to mind the glowing language in
which others spake of the same blessed and glo-
rious truth, for instance, " I know that my Re-
deemer liveth, and that He shall stand at the
latter day upon the earth ; and though after my
skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh
shall I see God, whom I shall see for myself, and
mine eyes shall behold, and not another;" when
we call these things to mind, it is difficult not to
see something peculiarly melancholy in the Ian-

NUMBERS XXIV. 14—25. 151

guage of Balaam. It is indeed difficult not to
read it as the confession of a guilty, though not
a penitent spirit ; " I shall behold him, but not
nigh." I shall see Him on his judgment-seat,
for " every eye shall see Him," but alas ! I shall
see Him only to receive my sentence, my deserved
sentence, of perpetual banishment from his glo-
rious presence.

May we all learn from so sad a history, con-
stantly to bear in mind, that knowledge, even of
the highest order, without faith and holiness, is
nothing worth ; that gifts without graces are
absolutely profitless. How little it will at that
day avail any of us even to be able to say, " Lord,
Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name V
our Lord has himself forewarned us. May our
prayer be, not only, Lord, open thou our eyes,
but, Lord convert our hearts ; regulate our con-
duct, sanctify our souls, and daily prepare us for
that hour when through thy merits, even thine
only, we shall awake up after thine image, and
be satisfied with it.

152 NUMBERS XXVII. 12—23.

EXPOSITION XXXVI.

[Here may be read from chapter xxv. to chapter
xxvii. verse 11.]

Numbers xxvii. 12 — 23.

12. And the Lord said unto Moses, Get thee up into
this mount Abarim, and see the land which I have given
unto the children of Israel.

13. And when thou hast seen it, thou also shalt be
gathered unto thy 2)eo2)le, as Aaron thy brother was
gathered.

14. For ye rebelled against my commandment in the
desert of Zin, in the strife of the congregation, to
sanctify me at the water before their eyes : that is the
water of Meribah in Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.

We are now approaching the closing scene of
the life of Moses, for which the verses we have
just read form the awful and solemn preparation.
The whole book of Deuteronomy, indeed, inter-
venes between this declaration and its fulfilment.
Nevertheless, only a few months elapsed, ere the
warning was verified, for the book of Deute-
ronomy contains little more than a repetition of
what had been already recorded, and therefore
occupies but a very brief space, in point of time.

NUMBERS XXVII. 12-23. 153

The Almighty having, in justice, resolved that
Moses should not enter the promised land, still,
in mercy, blesses him with the sight of its long
anticipated glories. He tells him that he shall
ascend Mount Abarim, which was the name of a
ridge of mountains along the eastern coast of the
Red Sea, of which Mount Nebo and Pisgah
formed a part, and that from thence he should " see
the land,'' and then be gathered to his fathers ;
again recording the humiliating reason, because
he had sinned at the water of Meribah. Moses
receives the intimation with that calmness and
submission which a long life of holy walking with
God would have led us to anticipate, and only
evinces, in the following verses, his anxiety that
a leader might be appointed in his place who
should be fully competent to the great and
arduous undertaking.

15. And Moses spake unto the Lord, saying,

16. Let the Lord, the God of the spirits ofallfiesh,
set a man over the congregation,

17. Which may go out before them, and which may
go in before them, and which may lead them out, and
which may bring them in; that the congregation of
the Lord be not as sheep which have no shepherd.

18. And the Lord said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua
the son of Nun, a man in whom is the sjjirit, and lay
thine hand upon him ;

19. And set him before Eleazar the priest, and before

H 5

154 NUMBERS XXVII. 12—23.

all the conyreyallon ; and (jh'c him a charge in their
sight.

20. And thou shalt ptit soine of thine honour upon
him, that all the congregation of the children of Israel
may be obedient.

21. And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest,
who shall ask counsel for him after the judgment of
Urim before the Lord : at his word shall they go out,
and at his word they shall come in, both he, and all
the children of Israel with him, even all the congre-
gation.

22. A7id Moses did as the Lord commanded him : and
he took Joshua, and set him before Eleazar the priest,
and before all the congregation :

23. And he laid his hands upon him, and gave him a
charge, as the Lord commanded by the hand of Moses.

Thus the great and important business of
Moses' successor was arranged, and Joshua the
son of Nun, appointed by the Almighty to fill
his post. It is interesting to trace in this, as in
many of God's dealings with his people, that
merciful principle to which our Lord in after ages
gave expression when he said, " To him that
hath, shall more be given." Joshua, as a young
man, had been " faithful found among the faith-
less," and now he is selected, by the Almighty,
from among the thousands of Israel, to be their
ruler and king. " Them that honour me, I will
honour," is a promise never forgotten by our

NUMBERS XXVII. 12—23. 155

God ; and a youth of holiness is not often suc-
ceeded by a manhood of penury and misery, or
the children of the righteous frequently found
" begging their bread."

Joshua is declared to be a man " in whom is
the Spirit," and it is more expressly stated in the
book of Deuteronomy, (xxxiv. 9,) " Joshua was
full of the Spirit of wisdom." Happy is it for
that nation, of whose rulers it can be pronounced,
that they are men full of the spirit of wisdom ;
thrice happy, if it can be said, that they are men
" in whom is the Spirit" of grace : then, and then
only, can we feel confident that " all things may
be so ordered and settled by their endeavours
upon the best and surest foundations, that peace
and happiness, truth and justice, religion and piety,
may be established among us for all generations." *
How important is it, therefore, that we should,
as christian families, pray for our rulers, not only
as a duty impressed upon us by apostolical in-
junction, but as one in which we are all, both
nationally and personally interested. We can
only hope for durable prosperity, in proportion
as our rulers and ourselves are under the direct
and continual influence of the Spirit of wisdom
and of grace, and really and earnestly desirous of
promoting the glory of God.

* Church Service.

156 NUMBERS XXXV. 1-5.

EXPOSITION XXXVII.

\_Here may he read from chapter xxviii. to
cliapter xxxiv. inclusive.^

Numbers xxxv. 1 — 5.

1 . And the Lord spake unto Moses in the plains of
Moab by Jordan near Jericho, saying,

2. Command the children of Israel, that they give
unto the Levites of the inheritance of their possession
cities to dwell in ; and ye shall give also unto the Levites
suburbs for the cities round about them.

3. And the cities shall they have to dwell in : and
the suburbs of them shall be for their cattle, and for
their goods, and for all their beasts.

4. And the suburbs of the cities, which ye shall give
unto the Levites, shall reach from the wall of the city
and outward a thousand cubits round about.

5. And ye shall measure from without the city on the
east side two thousand cubits, and on the south side
two thousand cubits, and on the west side two thousand
cubits, and on the north side two thousand cubits ; and
the city shall be in the midst : this shall be to them the
suburbs of the cities.

We find, in these verses, still farther directions
for the maintenance of the Levites, whose pro-
visions from the tithes and oblations of the con-

NUMBERS XXXV. 1—5. 157

gregation, had been before established. As the
Israelites were now approaching the promised
land, where it would no longer be needful to
dwell in tents, the Almighty here makes arrange-
ments for their more permanent abodes, and de-
termines that they shall have a certain propor-
tion of the cities in each tribe, allotted to them.
By this wise and merciful regulation, the Levites
were dispersed equally throughout all the thou-
sands of Israel, that none might be excluded from
the advantages of their neighbourhood, instruction,
or advice. Thus granting to the Levites, the
extensive suburbs attached to these cities, ex-
tending, as it appears, about three quarters of a
mile, around the walls, as pasturages for their
flocks and herds, but bestowing upon them no
arable land like the rest of their brethren. It
appears that, by this simple arrangement, care
was taken that their time and attention should
neither of them be occupied too much by the
charge of this world's goods, but be left at their
disposal for the devotional and sacrificial services
to which they were dedicated.

The advantages of a class of men thus set
apart for holy purposes, and yet residing in the
midst of their brethren as their guides, their
counsellors, and their friends, are so obvious, that
had not such an arrangement been clearly trace-

lo8 NUMBERS XXXV. C— 28.

able in the writings of the New Testament, it
is too evidently for the benefit of mankind, and
too plainly deducible from these dealings of the
Almighty with his ancient people, to have been
overlooked or neglected. Even the more worldly
politician would have seen the necessity for some
such institution. It is well for us, however, that
the word of our blessed Lord and the writings
of his apostles, afford such clear and plain direc-
tions upon this subject, that the necessity of a
" ministry of reconciliation " can never be dis-
puted by any enlightened reader of the Divine
Word, but must be acknowledged to form as
entirely a part and portion of the religion of the
Redeemer, as even the atonement itself.

EXPOSITION XXXVIII.

Numbers xxxv. G — 28.

6. And among the cities which ye shall give unto the
Levites, there shall be six cities for refuge, ivhich ye
shall appoint for the manslayer that he may flee thither :
and to them ye shall add forty and two cities.

7. So all the cities which ye shall give to the Levites
shall be forty and eight cities : them shall ye give with
their suburbs.

NUMBERS XXXV. G— 28. 159

8. And the cities ivhich ye shall give shall he of the
possession of the children of Israel : from them that
have many ye shall give many ; but from them that have
few ye shall give few : every one shall give of his cities

unto the Levites according to his inheritance which he
inheriteth.

9. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying.

10. Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto
them. When ye be come over Jordan into the land of
Canaan :

11. Then ye shall appoint you cities to be cities of
refuge for you ; that the slayer may fee thither, which
killeth any person at unawares.

12. And they shall be unto you cities for refuge from
the avenger : that the manslayer die not, until he stand
before the congregation in judgment.

13. And of these cities which ye shall give six cities
shall ye have for refuge.

14. Te shall give three cities on this side Jordan, and
three cities shall ye give in the land of Caaaan, which
shall be cities of refuge.

15. These six cities shall be a refuge, both for the
children of Israel, and for the stranger, and for the
sojourner among them ; that every one that killeth any
person unawares may flee thither.

16. And if he smite him with an instrument of iron,
so that he die, he is a murderer : the murderer shall
surely be put to death.

17. And if he smite him with throwing a stone, where-
with he may die, and he die, he is a murderer : the
murderer shall surely be put to death.

18. Or if he smite him with an hand weapon of wood,

IGO NUMBERS XXXV. 6—28.

wherewith he may die, and he die, he is a murderer :
the murderer shall surely he pnt to death.

19. The revenger of blood himself shall slay the mur-
derer : when he meeteth him, he shall slay him.

20. But if he thrust him of hatred, or hurl at him
hy laying of wait, that he die ;

21. Or in enmity smite him with his hand, that he
die : he that smote him shall surely be put to death :
for he is a murderer : the revenger of blood shall slay

the murderer when he meeteth him.

22. Bid if he thrust him suddenly without enmity,
or have cast upon him anything without laying of wait,

23. Or with any stone, whereivith a man may die,
seeing him not, and cast it upon him, that he die, and
was not his enemy, neither sought his harm :

24. Then the congregation shall judge betioeen the
slayer and the revenger of blood according to these
judgments :

25. And the congregation shall deliver the slayer out
of the hand of the revenger of blood, and the congrega-
tion shall restore him to the city of his refuge, whither
he was fed : and he shall abide in it unto the death
of the high priest, which was anointed with the holy
oil.

26. But if the slayer shall at any time come without
the border of the city of his refuge, whither he was

fled:

27. And the revenger of blood find him without the
borders of the city of his refuge, and the revenger of
blood kill the slayer : he shall not be guilty of blood :

28. Because he shoidd have remained in the city of
his refuge tintil the death of the high priest : but after

NUMBERS XXXV. 6—28. 161

the death of the high priest the slayer shall return into
the land of his possession.

We have here the first intimation of a remark-
able peculiarity in the laws of the Israelites'
the appointment of cities of refuge to which he
who had been guilty, not of murder, but of man-
slaughter might fly, and be safe from the pursuit
of the avenger of blood. These six cities of mercy
were placed among the eight-and-forty belonging
to the Levites, who would, from their habits and
avocations, be the most likely to compassionate
the lot of those who had need of such a refuge.
In the latter portion of the chapter, the persons
who should find safety in these cities are
plainly described, when it says, " Every one that
killeth any person unawares, may flee thither ;"
but the intentional murderer was most empha-
tically excepted, " Ye shall take no satisfaction
for the life of a murderer, which is guilty of
death, but he shall surely be put to death."

The manslayer, however, was to be tried by
the congregation, although he might have gained
the city of refuge, that it might be clearly proved
that be did not smite in enmity, or as our laws
would express it, with " malice prepense," for it
says, " Then the congregation shall judge be-
tween the slayer and the revenger of blood, accord-

162 NUMBERS XXXV. G— 28.

ing to these judgments : and the congregation
shall deliver the slayer out of the hand of the
revenger of blood, and the congregation shall
restore him to the city of his refuge whither he
was fled."

There were some striking peculiarities con-
nected with these cities, all of which seem to
point to the Great Refuge, of which they were
the acknowledged, though imperfect types. The
roads to them were to be kept constantly in
order, that the fugitive might have no impedi-
ment in his way to gain them ; there were also
to be direction-posts with the word " Refuge "
inscribed on them, that none might mistake
their path ; every facility was to be given to the
criminal that he might reach them, before the
avenger of blood could overtake him, and when
once within their walls, he was perfectly secure.

So is it also with the Christian's Refuge, the
Lord Jesus Christ. The way to Him is always
open, the road always clear, the directions to find
Him not to be mistaken ; no suppliant who
seeks an entrance at that gate of mercy ever
knocks in vain. But, then, we also must " fly
for refuge to the hope set before us," with the
same zeal, the same determination, the same un-
wearied resolution, as the Jewish fugitive. If we
are found by the avenger of blood, out of Christ

NUMBERS XXXVI. 1—9. 1G3

the Lord, our hope and our righteousness, we are
lost ; but once guided by the Spirit of God within
the enclosure of his mercy, the arms of his grace,
and even the worst of sinners shall assuredl}'
obtain security and peace. " The name of the
Lord is a strong tower, the righteous runneth
into it, and is safe."

[Here may he read from verse 29, to the end of
the chapter.^

EXPOSITION XXXIX.

Numbers xxxvi. 1 — 9.

1. And the chief fathers of the families of the chil-
dren of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh,
of the families of the sons of Joseph, came near, and
spake before Moses, and before the princes, the chief
fathers of the children of Israel :

2. And they said, the Lord commanded my lord to
give the land for an inheritance by lot to the children
of Israel : and my lord ivas commanded by the Lord to
give the inheritance of Zelophehad our brother unto his
daughters.

3. And if they be married to any of the sons of the
other tribes of the children of Israel, then shall their

164 NUMBERS XXXVI. 1—9.

inheritance he taken from the inheritance of our fathers,
and shall he put to the inheritance of the tribe where-
unto they are received : so shall it he taken from the
lot of our inheritance.

4. And when the jubilee of the children of Israel
shall he, then shall their inheritance he init unto the
inheritance of the trihe whereunto they are received :
so shall their inheritance he taken away from the in-
heritance of the trihe of our fathers,

A second difficulty had here arisen respecting
the daughters of Zelophehad, who were placed in
a very peculiar situation. We find from the
twenty-seventh chapter, that their father had died
in the wilderness, and that in consequence of
this, they would necessarily, having no brother,
be portionless, when the division of the land of
Canaan should take place. They accordingly
complained to Moses, and their suit was carried
before the Lord, who mercifully commanded that
their father's inheritance should be divided among
them. This was perfectly satisfactory, as re-
garded the young women themselves ; but now
another difficulty arose in the minds of the heads
of their tribe, which we have just heard, in the
verses we have read, viz. that if the daughters of
Zelophehad were permitted to marry into any of
the other tribes, their inheritances would in time
pass into the inheritance of the tribe with which

NUMBERS XXXVI. 1-9. 165

they had intermarried, and thus counteract the
express intention of the Almighty, that the dis-
tinct possessions should remain in the different
tribes to which they were at first allotted, for
ever. The elders, therefore, now once more
bring the cause before Moses, that he should
legislate upon this point also.

5. And Moses commanded the children of Israel,
according to the word of the Lord, saying. The tribe of
the sons of Joseph hath said loell.

6. This is the thing which the Lord doth command
concerning the daughters of Zelophehad, saying, Let
them marry to whom they think best; only to the
family of the tribe of their father shall they marry.

7. So shall not the inheritance of the children of
Israel remove from tribe to tribe : for every one of the
children of Israel shall heep himself to the inheritance
of the tribe of his fathers.

8. And every daughter, that possesseth an inherit-
ance in any tribe of the children of Israel, shall be wife
unto one of the family of the tribe of her father, that
the children of Israel may enjoy every man the inherit-
ance of his fathers.

9. Neither shall the inheritance remove from one tribe
to another tribe : but every one of the tribes of the
children of Israel shall keep himself to his own inherit-

The difficulty, therefore, to which we have re-
ferred, was overcome by permitting the daughters

166 NUMBERS XXXVI. 1-9.

of Zelopliehad to marry only within their own
tribe, by which regulation, their portion would
never pass from among the inheritance of their
brethren, and yet they would themselves have a
sufficient number, from which to choose their
future partners. The direction, " Let them marry
to whom they think best," is a remarkable proof
of the tendency of the only true religion, in all
ages, to exalt the characters and liberate the
persons of the female sex. If we compare this
freedom with the debasement, servility, and de-
gradation of women among the most civilised
nations of antiquity, it is impossible not to be
forcibly struck with this additional proof that the
institutions of the Jews were as much in advance
of those of other nations, as their lawgiver, di-
vinely taught as he unquestionably was, excelled
in character and conduct all others whom the
history of the world has bequeathed to us.

How ought these considerations to raise our
hearts, and especially the heart of every female
reader of God's word, in thanksgivingto that great
and merciful Being, who has placed her lot in a
land where, by the influence of the religion of the
Bible, she is rescued from the debasing situation
in which she would assuredly otherwise have been
found ; and ranked in that high and honourable
position for which she was originally created

10

NUMBERS XXXVI. 10—13. 167

and which by God's grace she is so well cal-
culated to fill and to adorn. If women could
only truly feel from what the light and grace of
the Gospel has preserved them, even in temporal
things, it would be impossible that they should
not dearly love that Saviour who has done so
much for them, both for time and for eternity.

EXPOSITION XL.

Numbers xxxvi. 10 — 13.

10. Even as the Lord commanded Moses, so did the
davyhters of ZeJophehad ;

11. For Mahlah, Tirzah, and Hoylah, and Milcah,
and Noah, the daughters of Zelophehad, were married
unto their father s brothers' sons :

12. And they were married into the families of the
sons of Manasseh the son of Joseph, and their inherit-
ance remained in the tribe of the family of their father.

13. These are the commandments and the judgments,
which the Lord commanded by the hand of Moses unto
the children of Lsrael in the plains of Moab by Jordan
near Jericho.

We have here, the conclusion of the matter
respecting the daughters of Zelophehad. By the

168 NUMBERS XXXVI. 10—13.

direction of Jehovah they were restricted to marry
within their own tribe, and accordingly selected
their first cousins, a degree of relationship,
therefore, which it is clear the Almighty has not
interdicted, since there were doubtless many
others, in the same tribe, with whom these young
women might have intermarried, had they so
chosen.

From the twenty-sixth chapter to the end of
the book at which we have now arrived, the
children of Israel were encamped " in the plains
of Moab by Jordan near Jericho," where we are
told that all these commandments and judgments
were given. The Israelites were now about,
almost immediately, to enter into the promised
land ; for although the whole book of Deute-
ronomy intervenes, it contains no single portion
of narrative, except the death of Moses. We
may, therefore, consider that in concluding the
book of Numbers, we have finished the wander-
inofs of the Israelites in the wilderness. And how
painful is the review of it ! all may be briefly
summed up in a single verse of the psalmist,
" Forty years long was I grieved with this gene-
ration, and said. It is a people that do err in
their heart, for they have not known my ways."
Although only the first and last years are re-
corded, we may conclude that they are not unfair
6

NUMBERS XXXVI. 10—13. 169

specimens of the whole, and if so, what a cata-
logue of mercies and miracles, on the part of
the Almighty, and of acts of disobedience and
rebellion, on the part of the Israelites, is laid
open to us ; how can we be surprised at the
result to Avhicli the apostle to the Hebrews so
plainly refers, when he says, " So we see that
they could not enter in, because of unbelief."

Most important, then, is it at the close of so
instructive a portion of holy writ, to look back
upon it, with the earnest, prayerful desire to
obtain from it those spiritual lessons for which
it was recorded. This appears to have been the
object of the apostle to the Hebrews, when,
having referred to the solemn and appalling
judgments bequeathed to us in this book, he im-
mediately adds, " Let us therefore fear, lest, a
promise being left us of entering into his rest,
any of you should seem to come short of it. For
unto us was the Gospel preaclied as well as unto
them ; but the word preached did not profit
them, not being mixed with faith in them that
heard it." In other words, the Israelites were
excluded from the land of promise, because they
did not believe the testimony which God had borne
concerning it. That is, they did not believe
that it was indeed that good land ^^■hich the Al-
mighty had pronounced it, neither did they be-

I

170 NUMBERS XXXVI. 10—13.

lieve that they could obtain possession of it in
the manner which He had appointed. Now let
us try and examine ourselves, brethren, whether
we are free from these open, and crying sins of
the Israelites. Is the word preached, received
by faith with us ? Do we believe that our pro-
mised land is the good, and happy, and blessed
place which it has pleased God to describe it to
us ? Do we simply and readily embrace the
method of entering into it which God has re-
vealed. Aiming at no other, looking for no
other, desiring no other, but the one, the only
way which it has pleased God to lay down. " /
am the icay, the truth, and the life; no man
Cometh unto the Father but by me ;" are the
words of our Lord. Are we content to seek the
promised land by this, " the king's highway,"
not intermingling with it the bypaths of human
invention, but keeping to the plain and simple
directions of our God ? " He that hath the Son,"
or that believeth on the Son, " hath life ; and
he that hath not the Son of God hath not life."
There is no perplexity in these directions, " the
wayfaring man though a fool shall not err
therein." The philosopher, the worldly-wise
may err, for " Not many wise men after the flesh
are called,"* but the simple-minded, prayerful
* 1 Cor. i. 26.

NUMBERS XXXVL 10—13. 171

follower of God's word shall never err, in so
great, so vital a concern. " Let us labour,
therefore, to enter into that rest, lest any man
fall after the same example of unbelief;" labour
prayerfully and painfully, with all our heart, and
soul, and mind, and strength, to maintain, by the
aid of God's good Spirit, our union with the true
and living vine, and to bring forth much fruit;
to glorify God in our day and generation, and to
be constantly, yea hourly, seeking to acquire a
greater degree of conformity to his will, of like-
ness to his image, and of meetness for his king-
dom. So shall our summons hence, come when
it may, be an expected and a joyful summons,
conveying to us that most gracious invitation,
" Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the
kingdom prepared for you from the foundation
of the world." For " there remaineth a rest for
the people of God," and being reconciled by
Christ, " this God is our God for ever and ever."

I 2

172 DEUTERONOMY I. 1—8.

DEUTEEONOMY.

EXPOSITION XLI.

Deuteronomy i. 1 — 8.

1. These he the words which Moses spake unto all
Israel on this side Jordan in the wilderness, in the plain
over against the Red Sea, between Paran, and Tophel,
and Lahan, and Hazeroth, and Dizahab.

2. {Thei-e are eleven d ay s^ journey from Horeh by the
way of mount Seir unto Kadesh-barnea.)

3. And it came to pass in the fortieth year, in the
eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that
Moses spake unto the children of Israel, acordiny to
all that the Lord had given him in commandment unto
them.

4. After he had slain Sihon the king of the Amorites,
which dwelt in Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan,
which dwelt at Astaroth in Edrei :

5. On this side Jordan, in the land of Moab, began
Moses to declare this law, saying,

6. The Lord our God spake unto us inHoreb, saying,
Ye have dwelt long enough in this mount :

DEUTERONOMY I. 1—8. 173

7. Turn you, and take your journey, and go to the
mount of the Amorites, and unto all the places niyh
thereunto in the plain, in the hills, and in the vale, and
in the south, and by the sea-side, to the land of the
Canaanites, and unto Lebanon, unto the great river, the
river Euphrates.

8. Behold, I have set the land before you : go in and
possess the land ivhich the Lord sware unto your fathers,
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give unto them and to
their seed after them.

[Here may be read from verse 9, to the end of
the chapter.^

Such is the commencement of the fifth and
last Book of the Pentateuch, called Deuteronomy,
or the second law, because it contains a repeti-
tion of the law which had been already pro-
mulged. Not indeed of the whole law, for that
which regarded the priests and Levites, does not
appear to have been repeated, but those which
chiefly affected the congregation, the body of the
people. These were all rehearsed by Moses
during the last month of his life, which, toge-
ther with the month of mourning for the pa-
triarch himself, occupies the whole period con-
tained in this book.

There is something extremely striking in the
view set before us, in the verses we have read.
The whole body of the Israelites, upwards of

174 DEUTERONOMY I. 1—8.

six hundred thousand men, besides women and
children, were encamped in the plains of Moab,
and this immense multitude were to be called
together, not to fight but to listen, while the
aged Moses, now in his hundred and twentieth
year, addresses them for the last time. Probably
these important discourses of the patriarch were
repeated by the seventy elders, to the different
portions of their countrymen who were beyond
the hearing of the voice of Moses, so that all
might, during this last month of the life of their
leader, profit by the great and important recol-
lections which were thus brought before their
minds.

Moses commences with the period, nearly forty
years before, when having remained in the neigh-
bourhood of Mount Horeb for a twelvemonth,
the Almighty had summoned them to go up and
possess the land which He had so often promised
them. It was a painful point in Israel's history,
and deeply must his hearers have felt their fathers'
sin, when thus reminded of it. Still it was
needful that they should both remember and feel
it, that they might be warned by the terrors of
God's judgments, as well as the blessings of his
love, how sad and bitter a thing it is to depart
from the living God, and how certainly the path
of obedience, is the only path of safety and of peace.

DEUTERONOMY I. 1—8. 175

When this generation, the men who had been
children at the time their fathers had refused
to go up and take possession of the promised
land, now heard all the particulars of that sin
repeated, as they were throughout the remainder
of the chapter, and recollected how fully the word
of the Lord had come to pass, surely the most
insensible among them must have felt his heart
swell with the determination that nothing should
tempt him to disobey so great, so awful, so
powerful a Being.

It was, no doubt, an incentive not to be
despised or resisted ; and can any of us who read
the narrative, look back upon twenty, or thirty,
or forty years of life, and see perhaps, indeed, no
trace of God's destroying judgments, but many
of his fatherly protection, compassion, and love,
marking the days that are gone? Then surely
we have still stronger motives than ever filled
the breast of an Israelite, to devote ourselves to
a holy obedience to that God, from whom are
derived all our mercies; who has not only given
us that best, that " unspeakable gift," his only-
begotten Son, but has also, " with Him, freely
given us all things," richly to enjoy. May the
retrospect not be lost upon any of us. May the
review of the mercies of the Israelites, recorded
in the book upon which we have now entered,

17G DEUTERONOMY II. 1—9.

induce us all to revert gratefully and thankfully
to our own individual and peculiar blessings.
May we, both masters and servants, have grace
to feel, that where much has been given, much
will assuredly be required ; and may the thought
lead us to earnest, faithful prayer that our hearts
may be knit more closely to Hiai who loved us
and gave himself for us ; that being not our
own, but the property of that gracious and mer-
ciful Saviour, who bought us with a precious
price, we may have no will but his, and no desire
so great as to " glorify Him in our bodies and
in our spirits," which are already his.

EXPOSITION XLII.

Deuteronomy ii. 1 — 9.

1. Then we turned, and took aw journey into the
wilderness by the way of the Red Sea, as the Lord
spake unto me : and roe compassed mount Seir many
days.

2. And the Lord spahe unto me, saying,

3. Ye have compassed this mountain long enough :
turn you northward.

4. And command thou the p)eopjle, saying. Ye are to
pass through the coast of your brethren the children of

DEUTERONOMY IL 1—9. 177

Esau, which dwell in Seir ; and they shall be afraid of
you : take ye good heed unto yourselves therefore :

5. Meddle not with them : for I loill not give you
of their land, no, not so much as a foot breadth j be-
cause I have given mount Seir unto Esau for a jposses-
sion.

Moses had reminded the Israelites, in the pre-
ceding chapter, that in consequence of the dis-
obedience of their fathers, in refusing to go up
at God's bidding to take possession of the pro-
mised land, the Almighty had deserted them
when they chose to go up of their own accord,
and had permitted their enemies to overcome
them, and to chase them " as bees do," into the
neighbourhood of Mount Seir. There they
" abode many days," indeed, during the far
greater portion of thirty-eight years ; until, as
we find from the fourteenth verse, " all the ge-
neration of the men of war, were wasted out
from among the host, as the Lord sware unto
them."

Then, again, the Lord called on them to move
northward from the mountain, and to pass
through the land of the children of Esau. Very
remarkable are the directions given to Israel
on this occasion, to respect the possessions of
their elder brother. " Meddle not with them ;
for I will not give you of their land, no, not so

1 5

178 DEUTERONOMY 11. 1—9.

much as a foot breadth, because I have given
Mount Seir unto Esau for a possession ;" and
yet the Edomites were the enemies of the Most
High. So wonderfully does the Almighty re-
spect his promises, notwithstanding the unwor-
thiness of those who profit by them. He will
not suffer even his chosen people to root out a
disobedient and God-forgetting nation from a
land which his own providence has conferred
upon them. The word of the Lord standeth
sure; so sure, that the children of disobedient
Esau shall hold their own, against the un-
numbered numbers of the seed of the pious
Jacob. The day, indeed, should come when the
Edomites *" should be utterly destroyed, but that
day had not arrived ; " their iniquity was not
yet full," the promise of the Lord standeth sure,
for " the o-ifts and callino-s of God are without
repentance," and even the Edomites were, for
the present, safe.

6. Te shall buy meat of them for money that ye may
eat ; and ye shall also buy water of them for money,
that ye may drink.

7. For the Lord thy God hath blessed thee in all the
works of thy hand : he knoweth thy walking through
this great wilderness : these forty years the Lord thy
God hath been with thee ; thou hast lacked nothing.

* See Obadiah i. 18.

DEUTERONOMY II. 1—9. 179

8. And when we passed by from our brethren the
children of Esau, which dwelt in Seir, through the way
of the 2)lain from Elath, and from Ezion-gaber, we
turned and passed by the loay of the ivilderness of
Moab.

9. And the Lord said unto me. Distress not the
Moabites, neither contend with them in battle : for I
will not give thee of their land for a possession : because
I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a pos-
session.

Here, again, and for a similar reason, the
Israelites were forbidden to conquer. This was,
indeed, a stronger case than the preceding, for
the Moabites were the descendants of" just Lot,"
and therefore in a peculiar manner under the
providence of the Almighty. But these were
striking lessons, at the very commencement of
Israel's wars, of the necessity of forbearance and
self-denial. Perhaps one great intention of the
Almighty might be, thus practically to inculcate
upon the Israelites the superiority of the conquest
over themselves, to the far more easy victory
over their enemies ; to teach the followers of
the Lord in after ages, that the most valuable
of all triumphs, are those which, by the aid of
the Holy Spirit of God, they are enabled to
achieve over their own desires, and passions, and
lusts, and tempers ; and that he alone is the true

180 DEUTERONOMY II. 24—37.

conqueror, who has thus learnt to subdue himself,
and, by Divine grace, to bring " every thought
into captivity to the obedience of Christ,"

[Here may he read from verse 10, to 23, in-
clusive,']

EXPOSITION XLIII.

Deuteronomy ii, 24 — 37.

24. Rise ye up, take your journey, and pass over the
river Arnon : behold, I have given into thine hand Sihon
the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land: begin to
possess it, and contend with him in battle.

25. This day will I begin to put the dread of thee
and the fear of thee upon the nations that are tinder
the whole heaven, who shall hear report of thee, and
shall tremble, and be in anguish because of thee.

26. And I sent messengers out of the wilder?iess of
Kedemoth unto Sihon king of Heshbon, with words of
peace, saying,

27. Let 7ne pass through thy land : I will go along
by the high way, I will neither turn unto the right hand
nor to the left.

28. Thou shalt sell me meat for money, that I may
eat; and give me water for money, that I may drink :
only I icill pass through on my feet :

DEUTERONOMY II. 24—37. 181

29. {As the children of Esau which dwell in Seir,
and the Moahites which dwell in Ar, did unto me ;)
until I shall jyass over Jordan into the land which the
Lord our Godgiveth us.

30. But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass
by him : for the Lord thy God hardened his spirit, and
made his heart obstinate, that he might deliver him into
thy hand, as appear eth this day.

31. And the Lord said unto me. Behold, I have
begun to give Sihon and his land before thee : begin to
possess, that thou mayest inherit his land.

32. Then Sihon came out against us, he and all his
people, to fight at Jahaz.

33. And the Lord onr God delivered him before us ;
and we smote him, and his sons, and all his people.

34. And we took all his cities at that time, and
utterly destroyed the men, and the women, and the little
ones, of every city, we left none to remain :

35. Only the cattle we took for a prey unto ourselves,
and the spoil of the cities which we took,

36. From Aroer, which is by the brink of the river of
Arnon, and from the city that is by the river, even
unto Gilead, there was not one city too strong for us :
the Lord our God delivered all unto us.

37. Only unto the land of the children of Ammon
thou camest not, nor unto any place of the river Jabbok,
nor unto the cities in the mountains, nor unto whatsoever
the Lord our God forbad us.

The Israelites had been taught, in the former
part of this chapter, to commence their career of
conquest, by the victory over themselves, in

182 DEUTERONOMY II. 21—37.

sparing the Edoraites, and the Moabites, and the
Ammonites, through whose country they were
passing, although they might have made them
an easy prey : they were now, however, to act
in a far different manner, and having learnt to
conquer themselves, were soon to commence
their triumph over their enemies.

We were told, in the book of Genesis,* that
when the Almighty made his promise of the land
to Abraham, he predicted that four hundred
years should pass, before the children of Abraham
should take possession of it, and gave this as the
important and remarkable reason for the delay,
" The iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full."
The justice of God lingered, while his sinning
creatures were wilfully filling up the measure of
their iniquities.

How awful a reflection ! That a nation may,
that we as individuals may, go on in reckless,
careless prosperity, believing that all is well
with us, until the very hour that the catalogue
of our sins is complete, our iniquities full, and
God's forbearance finished. Surely the very
thought ought to make the sinner tremble ; ought
to lead us all to look into our own hearts and lives,
and to examine ourselves lest there be any root of
bitterness growing up in secret, which shall one
* Gen. XV. 16.

DEUTERONOMY 11. 24—37. 183

day, when it has conceived, bring forth its deadly
fruit of unexpected punishment, and well-merited
wrath. The Ammorites were evidently wholly
unsuspicious of the fearful harvest for which
they were ripening: they thought not of it, until
the very hour when the sickle was put in. One
more hope appears to have been offered them by
Moses, in the merciful proposition that they
should permit the Israelites to pass through their
land in peace, as had been already done in the
case of the Edomites and the Moabites, but even
this they scornfully rejected.

We are told that the spirit of Sihon was har-
dened, and his heart rendered obdurate. This
was done judicially, or, as Bishop Patrick para-
phrases it, " God gave him over to his own
inflexible humour." It is a part of a sinner's
judgment when he will not repent, that he shall
not repent ; for the wise man hath said, " He
that being reproved, hardeneth his neck, shall
suddenly be destroyed and that without remedy."
It was sudden to the Amorites, although it had
been foretold by God four hundred years before.
Judgment shall always be sudden to the impe-
nitent, come when it may. Let us not wait then
for the signs of approaching punishment, before
we seek in deep and earnest penitence, a portion
of our Saviour's reconciliation, a share in our

184 DEUTERONOMY III. 1—25.

Redeemer's love. The father does not, indeed,
reject the disobedient child, who improves from
the fear of the rod ; but how much more ten-
derly does he regard him, if the mention of the
rod be never needful, if a grateful love be the
strongly-impelling motive which drives back the
wanderer to his bosom. And shall the Judge of
all the earth be less lenient, less tender, than
his poor erring creatures of the dust ? No, we
may rest assured, even while reviewing these
most fearful and most terrible of God's judg-
ments, that his mercies far, nay, infinitely out-
number them ; and as even the very Amorites
had one last offer of forbearance, almost at the
hour of judgment, so that assuredly no softened
and returning penitent shall ever seek his face
in vain.

EXPOSITION XLIV.

Deuteronomy iii. 1 — 25=

1. Then ive turned, and ivent up the way to Bashan :
and Off the king of Bashan came out against us, he and
all his people, to battle at Edrei.

2. And the Lord said unto me, Fear him not : for

DEUTERONOMY III. 1—25. 185

/ will deliver him, and all his people, and his land, into
thy hand ; and thou shalt do unto him as thou didst
unto Sihon king of the Amorites, which dwelt at
Heshbon.

3. So the Lord our God delivered into our hands Og
also, the king of Bashan, and all his people : and we
smote him, until none teas left to him remaining.

4. And we took all his cities at that time, there icas
not a city which we took not from them, theeescore
cities, all the region of Argoh, the kingdom of Og in
Bashan.

5. All these cities were fenced loith high icalls, gates,
and bars ; beside unwalled towns a great many.

6. And ive utterly destroyed them, as we did unto
Sihon king of Heshbon, utterly destroying the men,
loomen, and children, of every city.

7 . But all the cattle, and the spoil of the cities, we
took for a prey to ourselves.

8. And vje took at that time out of the hand of the
two kings of the Amorites the land that was on this
side Jordan, from the river of Arnon unto mount
TIermon ;

9. {Which Herman the Sidonians call Sirion ; and
the Amorites call it Shenir ;

10. All the cities of the jjlcin, and all Gilead, and
all Bashan, unto Salchah and Edrei, cities of the king-
dom of Og in Bashati.

1 1 . For only Og king of Bashan remained of the
remnant of giants ; behold, his bedstead was a bedstead
of iron : is it not in Rabbath of the children of Atmnon ?
nine cubits was the length thereof, and four cubits the
breadth of it, after the cubit of a man.

186 DEUTERONOMY III. 1—25.

12. And this land xohich we possessed at that time,
from Aroer, which is by the river Arnon, and half
mount Gilead, and the cities thereof, gave I unto the
Reuhenites, and to the Gadites.

13. And the rest of Gilead, and all Bashan, being
the kingdom of Og, gave I unto the half tribe of Ma-
nasseh ; all the region of Argoh, tvith all Bashan, which
was called the land of giants.

14. Jair the son of Manasseh took all the country of
Argob unto the coasts of Geshuri and Maachathi ; and
called them after his own name, Bashan-havoth-jair,
unto this day.

15. Aiid I gave Gilead unto Machir.

16. And unto the Reubenites and unto the Gadites
I gave from Gilead even unto the river Arnon half the
valley, and the border even unto the river Jabbok, which
is the border of the children of Amman ;

1 7. The plain also, and Jordan, and the coast thereof,
from Chinnereth even unto the sea of the plain, even the

salt sea, iinder Ashdoth-pisgah eastward.

18. And I commanded you at that time, saying. The
Lord your God hath given you this land to possess it :
ye shall pass over armed before your brethren the chil-
dren of Israel, all that are meet for the war.

19. But your ivives, and your little ones, and your
cattle, (for I know that ye have much cattle,) shall abide
in your cities which I have given you ;

20. Until the Lord have given rest unto your brethren,
as well as unto you, and until they also possess the land
which the Lord your God hath given them beyond
Jordan : and then shall ye return every man unto his
possession, which I have given you.

DEUTERONOMY III. 1—25. 187

21. And I commanded Joshua at that time, saying.
Thine eyes have seen all that the Lord your God hath
done unto these two kings : so shall the Lord do unto
all the kingdoms whither thou passest.

22, Ye shall not fear them : for the Lord your God
he shall fight for you.

Moses continuing his discourse, reminds the
Israelites in the early part of this chapter, of
the conquest of Og the king of Bashan, as he
had already put them in remembrance of the de-
struction of Sihon, king of the Amorites. He
next repeats the charge and the encouragement
which he had given to Joshua, derived from
their easy and complete triumph over the two
kings of whom we have spoken. Observe with
what assurance of faith the patriarch expresses
himself: " So shall the Lord do unto all the king-
doms whither thou passest. Ye shall not fear
them." There is no talk of probabilities, no men-
tion of even the strongest ho-pe of success ; all
is conviction, all is certainty. For one hundred
and twenty years had Moses been accustomed to
trace God's promises to their fulfilment, and now
at the close of his long life, mark the effect; his
faith does not for a moment falter; he is per-
fectly sure, that what God has promised, God
shall do. It is usually thus with the advanced
Christian ; years may weaken his body, but they

188 DEUTERONOMY III. 1—25.

tend only to confirm and strengthen his faith ;
it is now no longer as it once was, like the bruised
reed, or the smoking flax, but as the oak of
centuries, which even the whirlwind cannot up-
root, and as the burning bush, which all the
rivers of earth could not have quenched. But
let us attend again to the words of Moses while
reviewing one of the most affecting passages of
his long and eventful history.

23. And I besought the Lord at that time, sayirig,

24. O Lord God, thou hast begun to shew thy servant
thy greatness, and thy mighty hand : for what God is
there in heaven or in earth, that can do according to thy
works, and according to thy might ?

2.5. I pray thee, let me go over, and see the good
land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and
Lebanon.

You will remember that Moses had disobeyed
God, when performing the great and wonderful
miracle of calling water from the rock in Horeb,
and that in consequence, the Almighty had de-
clared that he should never set foot in the land
of promise. It must, indeed, have been a sore
and bitter trial, that the one great object of his
life, should thus have been for ever snatched
from his grasp, and doubtless, constantly and
grievously did Moses raourn for it. And now.

DEUTERONOMY III. 1—25. 189

at the close of his career, when the good land
was actually in sight, when all was ready, and
only a river to be crossed, and the country would
be their own, he alone must lie down and die,
and leave to others the glory of the conquest, and
the enjoyment of the jDOSsession. Our hearts
bleed for Moses, while we read his last hopeless
])etition, " I pray thee let me go over and see
the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly
mountain of Lebanon." I who have for forty
years of travail, borne all the burden of this
wayward people, I pray thee let me enter the
land for which I have suffered so much, and
laboured so severely. Alas ! how do the best of
men cling, even to the last, to this world and
its enjoyments ; how much more powerful is the
influence, upon almost every heart, of the things
which are seen, and are temporal, than of those
which are not seen, and are eternal ! Let us
endeavour, more and more, by the aid of God's
guiding and enlightening grace, to " walk by
faith and not by sight," contenting ourselves
with the glorious prospect which lies beyond the
narrow limits of time, and anxious, not so much
for a lengthened possession here below, as for
that " inheritance incorruptible and undefiled,
and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven
for those who are kept by the power of God,
throuoh faith, unto salvation."

190 DEUTERONOMY III. 26—29.

EXPOSITION XLV.

Deuteronomy iii. 26 — 29.

26. But the Lord was wroth with me for your sakes,
and ivoidd not hear me : and the Lord said unto me,
Let it svffi.ce thee ; speak no more unto me of this
matter.

27. Get thee %ip into the top of Pisgah, and lift up
thine eyes westward, and northward, and southward,
and eastward, and behold it with thine eyes : for thou
shalt not go over this Jordan.

28. But charge Joshua, and encourage him, and
strengthen him : for he shall go over before this people,
and he shall cause them to inherit the land which thou
shalt see.

29. So we abode in the valley over against Beth-peor.

Alas ! how deadly an enemy is sin ! One sin
drove Adam and Eve from their terrestrial
paradise, one sin committed nearly forty years
before, closed the ears of the Almighty against
the prayer of one of the best beloved of his ser-
vants, and excluded the good and holy patriarch
from the land of all his hopes and expectations.
" Thou shalt not go over Jordan." Moses, no
doubt, had long been pardoned, had long enjoyed
the consciousness of God's forgiving love and

DEUTERONOMY III. 2(i— 29. 191

abounding- mercy, and yet Moses must here reap
the due reward of his deed, that men may learn
that even a long life of the most obedient holi-
ness forms no atonement for a single transgres-
sion. It is thus that we are driven to the only
hope, to the only cleansing fountain, to the only
atonement, to the blood of Jesus Christ, for every
transgression, however small, for every dereliction
of duty, however it may be shaded from the eye
of man by the abundance of the fruits of right-
eousness, before we can hope to reverse the sen-
tence of our Judge.

Yet mark, how uniformly in judgment God
remembers mercy ; Moses had asked to go " over
and see the good land ;" the Almighty could
not, in justice to his own publicly proclaimed
sentence, grant the petition, yet He will, if we
may so say, do all that, under the circumstances,
could be done. He says in effect, " Go thou
canst not, but see it thou shalt." All of mercy
that could be mingled in this bitter cup, is thus
dropt into it by a Father's hand, which appeared
almost ready, if it were possible, to have re-
moved the cup itself. Then how tenderly is it
added, " Let it suffice thee, speak no more unto
me of this matter ;" as an earthly parent would
say to a child, whom his love makes him desire
to please, but whom his better reason dare not

8

192 DEUTERONOMY III. 26—29.

gratify. " Let it suffice thee,'' and doubtless it
did suffice that holy man, that the will of the
Lord should be done. Doubtless, as he stood
upon the top of Pisgah, the sight of the promised
land fully satisfied Moses, that if such were the
riches, and fertility, and beauty of the earthly
Canaan, that better land to which he was called,
and which he should shortly enter, would be in-
finitely more rich, more lovely, more beautiful,
than aught that eye had seen, or imagination
pictured. Could we but have heard him speak,
one hour after he had entered there, we can be-
lieve it would have been to join his praises to
those around the throne, that his prayer had not
been heard, and that he had not been permitted
to linger longer in a world, which, however
beautiful, is disfigured by misery and ruined by
sin.

Do our prayers, the prayers of faith, ever
appear to be left unanswered ? " Let it suffice"
us ; it is because our heavenly Father has some
better gift in store, than our blind faith can see,
or our stammering tongue can ask for.

DEUTERONOMY IV. 1—9, 193

EXPOSITION XLVI.

Deuteronomy iv. 1 — 9.

1 . Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes
and unto the judgments, ichich I teach you, for to do
them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land
which the Lord God of your fathers giveth you.

In thus commencing a most earnest appeal to
the children of Israel to obey the Lord their
God, how appropriately did Moses preface it, by
the allusion to his own disobedience, contained
in the last portion of Scripture which we read.
He had just reminded them, that a single act of
isobedience had excluded him, even their leader,
from the land of promise ; with what peculiar
emphasis, then, might he call upon them to
hearken and to obey, lest, near as they were to
that happy laud, similar conduct on their part
should receive a like reward, and they also should
be for ever shut out from its possession. We
may all learn much from the injunctions that
follow ; for the great and important truths which
they contain, the necessity of a careful and en-
lightened obedience to the commands of God,

194 DEUTERONOMY IV. 1—9.

were not more needful at the hour they were
delivered, than they are at the present moment,
and shall be to the end of time.

2. Ye shall not add unto the word which I command
you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye
may keep the commandments of the Lord your God,
which I command you.

3. Your eyes have seen what the Lord did because of
Baal-peor : for all the men that followed Baal-peor,
the Lord thy God hath destroyed them from among
you.

4. But ye that did cleave unto the Lord your God,
are alive every one of you this day.

5. Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments,
even as the Lord my God commanded me, that ye should
do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.

6. Keep therefore and do them ; for this is your
wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the
nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say.
Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding
people.

7. For what nation is there so great, who hath God
so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things
that we call upon him for ?

8. And what nation is there so great, that hath
statutes and judgments so righteous, as all this law, which
I set before you this day ?

9. Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul dili-
gently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have
seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days
of thy life : hut teach them thy sons, and thy sons'
sons.

DEUTERONOMY IV. 1—9. 195

Well might we as a Christian and highly fa-
voured nation, profit by directions such as these.
Surely if Israel had just reason to ask, " What
nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto
them, as the Lord our God is in all things that
we call upon Him for," England, thrice blessed,
and happy England, may we fully make the same
inquiry. What nation upon earth has for so long
a series of years enjoyed such prosperity ?
Where have temporal blessings been so largely
and so abundantly set forth.'* Where have spi-
ritual mercies been so widely and so graciously
extended? If there be a nation in which the
parental presence of our God has been peculiarly
manifested, a land in which the Scriptures of
truth and the ordinances of religion, and the
blessings of faithful and scriptural ministrations,
have been widely, we may almost say univer-
sally disseminated, a country in which alone of
all the nations of Europe, no enemy has for cen-
turies been permitted to set his foot, that land,
by the undeserved mercy of our God, is unques-
tionably our own. Great, indeed, have been
our privileges, and fearful will be our reckoning,
if blessings such as these have profited us not.
Observe, then, carefully, what Moses says should
be the wisdom and understanding of the great
nation to which he spake, in the sight of the

K 2

196 DEUTERONOMY IV. 1—9.

people of the earth. IVot their victories, upon
which they had just so gloriously entered, and
of the continuance of which they were assured ;
not their wealth, which was to pour in upon them
in after days from all quarters of the globe, but
simply this, " to keep and do the commandments
of the Lord." They were neither to add to
them, in the hope of pleasing God by any in-
ventions of their own, nor to " diminish oug-ht "
from them, with the desire of gratifying them-
selves. What God commanded, that they were
strictly and conscientiously to endeavour to per-
form, and not only to fulfil themselves, but to
teach them their sons and their sons' sons.

Such also will be our wisdom, as it is obviously
our duty. Keeping simply to the written word
of God, in its purity, that word, of which Luther
so wisely and so truly said, " God does more by
the simple power of his word, than you, and I,
and the whole world could effect by all our
efforts put together ! God arrests the heart, and
that once taken, all is won!"* Let us, then,
suffer no human traditions to interfere with this
great instructor, as " a rule of faith," a divine
director of conduct, and a converter of the heart ;
but endeavour, by God's help, to teach it and to
hand it down, unweakened and unadulterated
* L. op. (L.) x^iii. p. 255.

DEUTERONOMY IV. 1—9. 197

to our children and our children's children.
This can only be done as a nation, by being far
more solicitous than we have ever yet shown
ourselves, upon the subject of an universal and
religious national education, which should find
its way into the poorest abodes of want, into the
densest population of our manufactories, and
into the lowest and darkest dwellings in our
mines ; to which all should be welcome, and
from which none should be permitted to be ex-
cluded. That we may be qualified properly to
do this, may we always remember, that the first
step to instruct others, is under the teaching and
guidance of the Holy Spirit, to learn to under-
stand the word of God, and to endeavour to
practise it ourselves. Let this be one of the
leading objects of our lives ; let neither business,
nor idleness, divert us from it, and we shall find
in the directions of that blessed book, a light,
which the wisest philosophy could not have fur-
nished ; and in its consolations, a peace, which
the united wisdom and solaces of the world could
never have bestowed.

[^Here may he read from verse 10, chapter iv., to
verse 22, chapter v., inclusive. ~\

198 DEUTERONOMY V. 23—33.

EXPOSITION XLVII.

Deuteronomy v. 23 — 33.

23. And it came to pass, when ye heard the voice out
of the midst of the darkness, (for the mountain did hum
with fire,) that ye came near unto me, even all the heads
of your tribes, and your elders ;

24. And ye said. Behold, the Lord our God hath
shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have
heard his voice out of the midst of the fire : we have
seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he
liveth.

25. Noiv therefore why should we die ? for this great
fire will consume us. If we hear the voice of the Lord
our God any more, then we shall die.

26. For who is there of all fiesh, that hath heard the
voice of the living God, speaking out of the midst of the

fire, as we have, and lived ?

27. Go thou near, and hear all that the Lord our
God shall say : and speak thou unto us all that the
Lord our God shall speak unto thee, and we will hear
it, and do it.

The former portion of this chapter is occupied
by a repetition of the Ten Commandments, upon
which we have already commented in the book of
Exodus. Moses here reminds the Israelites of
the fearful panic inspired by the terrible mani-

J

DEUTERONOMY V. 23—33. 199

festations of the Divine power which accom-
panied the giving of the Decalogue, when all
who saw the fire burning upon the mount ex-
pected to be consumed, and when they Avho heard
the voice, feared that they should die. Such
have ever been the feelings of sinful man, at the
thought of the unclouded manifestation of Deity.
It is deeply interesting to observe the remedy
which these fears appear, if we may so say, na-
turally to have suggested. " Go tkou near," said
the people of Israel to Moses, " and hear all that
the Lord our God shall say, and speak thou unto
us all that the Lord our God shall speak unto
thee, and we will hear it, and do it." Observe
how, almost instinctively, poor, fallen man dis-
cerns his need of a mediator ! " Go thou near,"
we dare not, lest we die, is the feeling of the
trembling Israelites. How merciful is it, that it
has pleased God to provide that, of which man
has so universally and so keenly felt the need !
In the example before us, as we shall see the
Almighty had at once recognised the wisdom
of the petition, and acceded to its prayer.

28. And the Lord heard the voice of your words,
when ye spahe unto me ; and the Lord said unto me, L
have heard the voice of the toords of this people, which
they have spoken unto thee : they have well said all that
they have spoken.

200 DEUTERONOMY V. 23—33.

29. O that there tvere such an heart in them, that
they would fear me, and keep all my commandments
always, that it might he well loith them, and with their
children for ever !

Alas ! the difference between saying and doing !
The Almighty himself declared that even the
Israelites had spoken well, but He implies that
there was little hojie that their actions should be
equal to their words ; " O that there were such an
heart in them," is the exclamation of Jehovah
himself! O that these stiffnecked and perverse
people would really resolve upon that life of holy
obedience, of which they acknowledge so readily
the value ! It is comparatively easy to discern
the truth and beauty of all that God commands,
but alas ! hoAv far is this, from determining, by
God's help, upon a steady, persevering, prayerful
fulfilment of it! To see the good, and to follow
the evil, has been in all ages the lot of man. A
lot from which none but God's Holy Spirit,
faithfully and constantly sought, can deliver us.
But of nothing should we possess a greater
dread, than of that useless religion of the lips,
which contents itself with talking of the precepts
and promises of the Gospel, but has not even a
desire to practise the self-denying injunctions of
the former, or to seek earnestly and perseveringly
for an interest in the blessinos of the latter. It

DEUTERONOMY V. 23—33. 201

is almost a misfortune to possess the gift of talk-
ing wisely upon religion, without the grace of
practising holily.

30. Go say to them. Get you into your tents again.

31. But as for thee, stand thou here by me, and I
tcill speak unto thee all the commandments, and the
statutes, and the judgments, which thou shalt teach
them, that they may do them in the land which 1 give
them to possess it.

32. Ye shall observe to do therefore as the Lord your
God hath commanded you : ye shall 7iot turn aside to
the right hand or to the left.

33. Ye shall walk in all the ways which the Lord
your God hath commanded you, that ye may live, and
that it may be well with you, and that ye may jirolong
your days in the land which ye shall possess.

The Almighty here fully acquiesces in the
desire of the terrified Israelites, and orders them
back to their tents again ; appointing Moses to
hear and deliver to them those truths, which they
dared not receive from the lips of God himself.
How great are our blessings, that this most
natural and most pressing of all our spiritual
wants, is so mercifully applied to us. In the
" one Mediator between God and man, the man
Christ Jesus," every need even of the most timid
of his creatures, is mercifully provided for. We
have, in this blessed Mediator, in the person of

K 6

202 DEUTERONOMY V. 23—33.

our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ a man who,
like Moses, can be touched with a feeling of our
infirmities, and yet a God who, unlike Moses,
can infallibly redress them. Let us, then, never
be tempted to put such shame ujjon this ap-
pointed Mediator, as to look to saints or to angels
to do for us that, which He hath undertaken
with so unbounded a love, and at so countless a
cost. What would our dearest friend think of
us, if we preferred to ask a favour of one, with
whom his own interest was supreme, through the
mediation of a servant or a pauper, instead of
himself? Could there be a greater and more
palpable affront ? Yet this is done by all who
attempt to add the mediation of any created
beings, be they saints, or angels, or the blessed
Virgin herself, to that of the only-begotten Son
of God. And this is often called humility !
May we content ourselves with the humility
taught by the written Word, and not desire to
gild the fine gold of the sanctuary with the
glittering but worthless tinsel of man's devices.

DEUTERONOMY VI. 1—5. 203

EXPOSITION XLVIII.

Deuteronomy vi. 1 — 5.

1. Xoiv these are the commandments, the statutes,
and the judgments, ivhich the Lord your God commanded
to teach you, that ye might do them in the land whither
ye go to possess it :

2. That thou mightest fear the Lord thy God, to
keep all his statutes, and his commandments, which I
command thee; thou, and thy son, and thy son s son,
all the days of thy life ; and that thy days may be fro-
longed.

3. Hear therefore, 0 Israel, and observe to do it,
that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase
mightily, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath promised
thee, in the land that foweth with milk and honey.

4. Hear, 0 Israel : the Lord our God is one Lord :

5. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all
thine heart, and with all thy soid, and with all thy
might.

In this chapter, the same duties, and cautions,
and precepts, are reiterated, as have formed the
substance of the two preceding. In the old dis-
pensation, as well as in the new and " better
covenant," love to God appears to be the great
end and object of all religion, standing out

204 DEUTERONOMY YI. 1—5.

amongst the commands of God, with a pro-
minency and an importance, which almost over-
shadow every other. So that, in after ages, when
our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ was asked,
" Which is the great commandment in the law ?"
He did not hesitate to answer, " Thou shalt love
the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with
all thy soul, and w^ith all thy mind. This is the
first and great commandment." Strange, indeed,
is it, that that, which, if our hearts were right,
if they now were, as Adam's was, when it came
fresh from the hands of the Creator, and was
pronounced " very good," would be the chiefest
of our pleasures, the most natural and the choicest
of our delights, is now compelled to be enforced
upon us as a difficult duty, and urged upon us
as a peremptory command. Yet so it most as-
suredly is, and none who has ever made the
attempt to fulfil it, will for one moment doubt
the need of all the strong and cogent precepts
that enforce it. Do we desire a powerful and
unanswerable evidence of the innate depravity
and corruption of our fallen nature, surely we
have it here. What would an angel say, were
he commanded to love God ? What would be
the feelings with which he would listen to the
delivery of such an order ? Would it be pos-
sible to make him believe that the speaker were

DEUTERONOMY VI . 1—5, 205

in earnest ? We think not ; but if he did, his
reply would probably be, Love God ! why, it is
the very joy of uiy heart, the one grand object
of my existence ; in his presence alone is life,
in his love alone is happiness, without it, heaven
itself would be desolate, and the thought of
eternity a burden. Yet when we are commanded
to love the Lord our God, with all our heart,
and soul, and mind, and strength, we, alas ! feel
no reason to doubt that we need the precept ;
our only question is, whether with every desire
to do so, and every aid that we shall receive from
on high, we shall in reality ever fully and faith-
fully practise it. Even when truly reconciled
to God by his dear Son, when owning Him, as
worthy, and alone worthy of our gratitude and
love, when enabled, in some degree, to feel with
the psalmist, " Whom have I in heaven but
Thee, and there is none upon earth that I desire
in comparison of Thee," — even then, where is the
Christian who can say, I have fully achieved
this arduous duty ; I now love God with all my
heart, and with all my soul, and with all ray
strength? Alas! where is the man, who knows
his own heart, who will not rather say. Lord,
increase our love to Thee, for it bears no pro-
portion, scarcely a resemblance to Thy love for
us. So dull is it, that there are times, when the
7

206 DEUTERONOMY VI. G— 25.

greatest efforts cannot arouse it ; so cold, that
there are liours when even the recollection of
Thy dying love cannot kindle it : so dead, that
there are moments when it can neither speak in
prayer, nor breathe in praise. O Lord, for thy
great mercies'* sake increase our love.

EXPOSITION XLIX.
Deuteronomy vi. 6 — 25,

6. And these words which I command thee this day,
shall be in thine heart :

7. And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy
children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in
thine house, .and when *^ou walkest by the way, and
when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

8. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine
hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.

9. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy
house, and on thy gates.

10. And it shall be, when the Lord thy God shall
have brought thee into the land which he sware unto
thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to
give thee great and goodly cities which thou buildedst
not,

1 1 . And houses fidl of all good things, which thou

DEUTERONOMY VI. 6—25. 207

filledst not, and wells digged, which thou diggedst not,
vineyards and olive-trees, which thou plantedst not;
when thou shalt have eaten and be full;

12. The7i beware lest thou forget the Lord, which
brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the
house of bondage.

13. Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and se?'ve
him, and shalt swear by his name.

14. Ye shall not go after other gods, of the gods of
the people which are round about you :

15. {For the Lord thy God is a jealous God among
you) lest the anger of the Lord thy God be kindled
against thee, and destroy thee from off the face of the
earth.

16. Te shall not tempt the Lord your God, as ye
tempted him in Massah.

17. Te shall diligently keep the commandments of
the Lord your God, and his testimonies, and his statutes,
which he hath commanded thee.

18. And thou shalt do that which is right and good
in the sight of the Lord : that it may be well with thee,
and that thou may est go in and possess the good land
which the Lord sware unto thy fathers ;

19. To cast out all thine enemies from before thee,
as the Lord hath spoken.

20. And when thy son asketh thee in time to come,
saying. What mean the testimonies, and the statutes,
and the judgments, which the Lord our God hath com-
manded you ?

21. Then thou shalt say unto thy son. We were
Pharaoh's bondmen in Egypt ; and the Lord brought us
out of Egypt with a mighty hand.

208 DEUTERONOMY VI. 6—25.

22. And the Lord shewed signs and loonders, great
and sore, upon Egypt, upon Pharaoh, and upon all his
household, before our eyes :

23. And he brought us out from thence, that he might
bring us in, to give us the land which he sware v.nto our

fathei's.

24. And the Lord commanded us to do all these
statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always,
that he might preserve us alive, as it is at this day.

25. And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe
to do all these commandments before the Lord our God,
as he hath commanded us.

The command at the commencement of these
verses, was doubtless the origin of the Jewish
phylacteries, of which our Lord does not appear
to have disapproved, although He condemned
the hypocrisy which unncessarily enlarged them,
as he did the " pretence' which made " long-
prayers." We learn from Calmet, that they were
formed of pieces of parchment, upon which the
text, on the love of God, commented on in our
last exposition, was usually written ; these were
rolled up, and enclosed in a case of black calfs
skin, and then fastened around the head, and on
the wrist of the left arm. While similar pieces
of parchment were affixed to the doors of their
houses, upon which the Jews laid their hands
as often as they left their houses, saying, " The
Lord preserve my going out and my coming in."

DEUTERONOMY VI. 6-25. 209

Religion, as we see from the portion of Sci-ipture
we have just read, was in fact to be the great
business of their lives, and the God whom they
served was never to be absent from their
thoughts ; they were not only to teach his com-
mands formally to their children, but were to
think of them and converse upon them in their
most familiar intercourse, " When thy son asketh
thee in time to come," and " When thou sittest
in thine house, and when thou walkest by the
way, and when thou liest down, and when thou
risest up." There can, scarcely, be a better test
of the hold which true religion possesses of the
heart, than the readiness with which it finds its
way into our daily and hourly thoughts. Surely
it would do much to exclude the world, and its
concerns, from all undue and unnecessary pre-
ponderance, were this more cultivated ; while
religious conversation, conducted judiciously and
wisely, would tend greatly to keep alive in our
families, and in our own hearts, tliat flame of
true religion which is apt to burn so feebly, or
to languish so mournfully. As an incentive to
this great and difficult duty, let us often call lo
mind those most encouraging words of the pro-
phet, " Then, they that feared the Lord spake
often one to another, and the Lord hearkened,
and heard it, and a book of remembrance was

210 DEUTERONOMY YII. 1— r>.

written before him for them that feared the
Lord, and that thought upon his name. And
they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in
that day when I make up my jewels; and I will
spare them, as a man spareth his own son that
serveth him." *

EXPOSITION L.

Deuteronomy vii. 1 — 5.

1. When the Lord thy God shall bring thee into the
land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out
many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Gir-
gashites, a7id the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the
Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven
nations greater and mightier than thou;

2. And when the Lord thy God shall deliver them
before thee ; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy
them ; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew
mercy unto them :

3. Neither shalt thou make marriages with them ;
thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his
daughter shalt thou take unto thy son.

4. For they will turn away thy son from following
me, that they may serve other gods : so ivill the anger

* Malachi iii. 16, 17.

DEUTERONOMY VII. 1—5. 211

of the Lord be kindled against you, and destroy thee
suddenly.

5. But thus shall ye deal with them ; ye shall de-
stroy their altars, and break down their images, and
cut down their groves, and burn their graven images
with fire.

Here is the commencement of those fearful and
terrible commands, issued by the Almighty to
regulate the warfare upon which the children of
Israel were now entering. Before we venture
to pronounce an opinion on these directions, let
us remember from whom they came ; even from
that great and wonderful Being who is the
Maker and Governor of the universe, and who
has a right to exercise his infinite and absolute
sovereignty, as seemeth Him good. Let us bear
in mind, if we are in any degree tempted to
cavil at the purposes to which we are now about
to behold this power applied, let us bear in mind
the striking apostrophe of the apostle, " Nay
but, O man, who art thou that repliest against
God ? Shall the thing formed, say to him that
formed it, why hast thou made me thus? Hath
not the potter power over the clay?" With
minds deeply imbued with this great and awful
truth, we may venture humbly and cautiously
to scan even the most terrible orders of the
Almighty, and shall find in them nothing that

212 DEUTERONOMY VI I. 1-5.

the strictest justice and the most forbearing
mercy would not approve. It is true that the
directions to the Israelites are, respecting the
seven nations which have been enumerated, "Thou
shalt smite them and utterly destroy them, thou
shalt make no covenant with them, nor show
mercy unto them." No doubt a strict and awful
sentence, but then we must call to mind, how
long, how grievously, how insolently, these na-
tions had offended God. We must remember
that " because they did not like to retain God
in their memory," they had fallen from that
traditional knowledge of Him, which all the na-
tions of the earth had once possessed, into an
idolatry so gross, so cruel, so bloody, that even
their very sons and daughters were offered in
sacrifice to devils, and with rites so abominable
and disgusting, that had they become universal,
nothing: but a second delus;e could have cleansed
the world from their impurities. Had these
wretched people been swept from the surface of the
earth by fire, like the ungodly cities of the plain ;
or had they been overthrown as Nineveh was
threatened, by the momentary crash of some
overwhelming earthquake ; who would not have
seen at once the justice of the Almighty, mag-
nified in their well-merited punishment? The
difference, then, between the real case, and the

DEUTERONOMY VII. 1—5. 213

imaginary, is simply this, that the Israelites were
in the hand of God, the fire and the earthquake,
which obeyed his commands and inflicted the
chastisement for which the sins of these nations
had so long, and so loudly called. If asked why
was this method preferred by a God of mercy, it
would be quite suflEicient to answer, " Shall not
the Judge of all the world do right ?" It was
because the Lord so willed it. But we may,
j)erhaps, be permitted, without sinful presump-
tion, to go one step further, and to suggest that
love to his people formed as powerful a motive
for the selection of this method, by the great
Jehovah, as justice to his enemies. It was, we
have no doubt, mercy, and strictly mercy, even
according to our dull and limited views, which
prompted this method of Divine chastisement, in
preference to every other. For might we not
ask, was there no mercy to the delinquents in a
longer respite, and slower march of events, by
which time for individual penitence and even
national reformation was abundantly granted ?
We believe there was. But of this we are sure,
that there was obvious mercy to the nation, em-
ployed by God, to carry his edicts into effect.
For, what could tend so powerfully to impress
upon the minds of the Israelites, the hatred of
the Almighty to idolatry, and the certainty

214 DEUTERONOMY VII. 1—5.

of its fearful punishment, as to be made them-
selves, in these most appalling instances, the
executioners of God's vengeance ? Where is
the man, who, after carrying fire and sword
through a whole country, and desolating the
very face of the earth, as the avowed reward for
this particular crime, could quietly return to his
home and kneel down to the stock of a tree ?
For such a one you might, at this time, have
sought the thousands of Israel in vain. It is too
true, that idolatry was not long banished from the
hearts and homes of the Israelites, but all that
generation, at least, had passed away, before any
could be found sufficiently hardened to have for-
gotten the dreadful events in which they had
borne a part ; or, for the works of men's hands,
wood and stone, to forsake the God of their
fathers. Well, then, may we lay our hands upon
our mouths, when disposed, with modern infidels,
to question the mercy or the justice of such awful
deeds as these. " It is the Lord, let Him do
what seemeth Him good," must be the language
of our hearts. Well may we retire into our-
selves, and see that no created object be per-
mitted to usurp, even for a moment, that throne
in our affections which God himself condescends
to occupy, or even to divide with Him that
sovereignty, which must be his and his alone.
5

DEUTERONOMY VII. 6-12. 215

EXPOSITION LI.

Deuteronomy vii. 6 — 12.

6. For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy
God : the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special

people vnto himself, above all people that are upon the'
face of the earth.

7. The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose
you, because ye were more in number than any people ;
or ye were the fewest of all people :

8. But because the Lord loved you, and because he
would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your
fathers, hath the Lord brought you out with a mighty
hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen,
from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.

9. Know therefore that the Lord thy God he is God,
the faithful God, ivhich keepeth covenant and mercy with
them that love him, and keep his commandments, to a
thousand generations.

10. And repay eth them that hate him, to their face,
to destroy them : he will not be slack to him that hateth
him, he will repay him to his face.

We had, in the last exposition, a remarkable
instance of the exercise of the sovereignty of the
great Jehovah, in the destruction of his enemies ;
we have here an equally important evidence to

216 DEUTERONOMY VII. G— 12.

the same high doctrine, in the selection of his
jjeople. Very plainly and emphatically, does
the Almighty inform the Israelites, that it was
on account of no superior merits of their own,
that they were thus chosen out of all the king-
doms of the earth to be the monuments of God's
mercy, and the depository of his word. Very
distinctly are they told, that they had nothing
to recommend them to the choice of the Most
High, not even their magnitude as a nation, for
Moses confesses the humbling truth, " Ye were
the fewest of all people," yet did God select them
to be a " special people unto himself, above all
people that are upon the face of the earth."
What clearer comment can we require, upon
that declaration of the apostle, quoting the very
words of God himself, " I will be gracious to
whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy
on whom I will show mercy." (Rev. ix. 15.)
What more decisive proof, that the sovereignty
of God is an attribute as dear to Him as his
justice, or his love, and as plainly and unequi-
vocally developed ; why are we, for instance, at
this moment listening to the blessed truths of his
holy word, while thousands and tens of thou-
sands of dying sinners have never heard them ?
Why? but because such is the will of our Father
which is in heaven ; can the wisest of men go

DEUTERONOMY VH. 6—12. 217

one step farther back than this? or render a
more sufficient reason ? But mark the use which
Moses makes of this display of the Divine sove-
reignty ; he does not refer to it to gratify the
national pride, or to strengthen the individual
confidence of the Israelites. Far, very far from
it: he simply adduces it as a deeply influential
motive for their heartfelt gratitude and holy
obedience. Surely, then, the same great truth
ought to possess a powerful influence in pro-
ducing the same effects upon ourselves. Have
we been, as a nation, as a family, as individuals,
thus made, most undeservedly, the partakers of
the mercy and goodness of God ? Have we been
blest with the faithful ministry of his word, from
which others have been excluded ? Have our
hearts been touched as it were with a live coal
from off the altar, and kindled into love and gra-
titude to the blessed Author of all our mercies,
while many around us remain cold, insensible,
and obdurate ? " What shall we render unto
the Lord for all his mercies?" Shall we not
thankfully acknowledge that all is of grace, un-
merited, unlooked for grace ; that " Not unto
us, 0 Lord, not unto us, but unto Thy Name
give glory, for Thy mercy and Thy truth's
sake." * Shall we not constantly, gratefully, and
* Ps. cxv. 1.

L

218 DEUTERONOMY VII. G— 12.

prayerfully, endeavour to make some return for
all these unspeakable blessings, that, as our
Church service admirably expresses it, " we may
show forth his praise, not only with our lips, but
in our lives." Most earnest should we be, in
this heartfelt endeavour, by remembering and
acting upon the remembrance, that if the Lord
our God hath chosen us, it is " to be a special
people unto himself," " a holy, a peculiar people,
zealous of good works :" or, as St. Peter declared
to the strangers to whom he wrote, " Elect ac-
cording to the foreknowledge of God the Father,
through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obe-
dience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus
Christ."

It is then, that we can best rejoice in the
thoughts of our election, when we are most
patient in suffering, most active in doing the
will of the Lord, " being filled with the fruits of
righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ unto the
glory and praise of God."* Most naturally, there-
fore, did Moses conclude this portion of his
address to the Israelites, by saying,

1 1 . Thou shall therefore keep the commandments, and
the statutes, and the judgments, which I command thee
this day, to do them.

12. Wherefore it shall come to pass, if ye hearken

* Phil. i. 2.

DEUTERONOMY YII. 6—12. 219

to these judgments, and keep and do them ; that the
Lord thy God shall keep unto thee the covenant and
the mercy which he sware unto thy fathers.

The Israelites were not for a moment to con-
clude, that because the Almighty had thus chosen
them out of all the world, as the people upon
whom He had set his love, and whom He in-
tended to bless and prosper in the most astonish-
ing and unpfecedented manner, that they were
therefore at liberty to live as they pleased, either
obeying or disobeying his commands, and that
all would equally go well with them. No, we
have just seen, that it was a part of the covenant,
that " they should keep and do the judgments
of the Lord," and many and awful were the evils
to which, if this were disregarded, they should
most assuredly be exposed. So is it with our-
selves. That merciful Being who hath chosen
us to salvation as an end, has chosen us also to
sanctification as the means that leads to it; " Holy,
holy, holy," is the " Lord God of Sabaoth, and
ho^y must every renewed and pardoned sinner
be, holy in the robes of a Saviour's righteousness,
holy in affections, pure in heart, righteous in life,
through the all-pervading influence of the Divine
Spirit, before he can be rendered meet to be an
inhabitant of that city, where " holiness unto the

L 2

220 DEUTERONOMY VIII. 1—20.

Lord " shall be stamped upon every brow, and
fully occupy, throughout the years of eternity,
every glorified and grateful heart.

[Here may he read from verse 13, to the end of
the chapter.^

EXPOSITION LII.

Deuteronomy viii. 1 — 20.

1 . All the commandments which I command thee this
day, shall ye observe to do, that ye may live, and mul-
tiply, and go in and possess the land which the Lord
sware unto your fathers.

2. And thou shalt remember all the way which the
Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilder-
ness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know ivhat
was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his co?n-
mandments or no.

3. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger,
and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not,
neither did thy fathers know ; that he might make thee
know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every
word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth
man live.

4. Thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did
thy foot swell, these forty years.

DEUTERONOMY VIII. 1—20. 221

5. Thou shalt also consider in thine heart, that, as
a man chasteneth his son, so the Lord thy God chas-
teneth thee.

6. Therefore thou shalt keep the commandments of
the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to fear
him.

7 . For the Lord thy God hringeth thee into a good
land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains, and depths
that spring out of valleys and hills ;

8. A land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and fig-
trees, and pomegranates ; a land of oil olive, and
honey ;

9. A land wherein thou shalt eat bread without
scarceness, thou shalt not lack any thing in it ; a land
whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills thou may est
dig brass,

Moses, in the verses we have just read, recalls
to the minds and hearts of the children of Israel,
some of the many and great wonders which their
eyes had witnessed, during their long and weary
travel. He does this to furnish them with a
fresh incentive to obedience, knowing well how
greatly they would stand in need of it. He
therefore dwells upon the astonishing goodness
of God, in preserving to them their bodily com-
forts undiminished, through so long a series of
years. He reminds them that even their very
raiment had been miraculously preserved to them,
unworn by age, unsoiled by travel, during forty

222 DEUTERONOMY YIII. 1—20.

years of wandering: that they had been fed with
a food, which neither they nor their fathers had
ever conceived of; and deduces from this, the
valuable lesson, that man doth not live by bread
alone, but that so entirely is he dependent upon
the great Jehovah for existence, that he may
rather be said to live upon his Word. Very
instructive is the use which our divine Lord and
Saviour makes of this declaration, in after ages,
when tempted by the devil to turn stones into
bread ; He simply replies in these words of
Moses, " Man shall not live by bread alone, but
by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth
of God ;" clearly intending to convey, that it
was no more necessary for Him to turn stones
into bread to obtain nourishment, than it was for
the multitudes of Israel to have performed a
similar miracle upon the sands of the desert.
God is God all-sufficient, and they who trust Him
shall never want any good thing ; most wisely,
therefore, did the psalmist say, " Trust in the
Lord, and verily thou shalt be fed ;" * and most
piously did he appropriate this great truth to
himself, when he exclaimed, " The Lord is my
Shepherd, I shall not want." Let, then, no faith-
ful follower of our Redeemer doubt the fact, that
his " bread and his water shall be sure," for his
* Ps. XXX vii. 3.

DEUTERONOMY VIII. 1—20. 223

Father knoweth that he hath need of these
things, and will, if for his good, supply them.

10. When thou hast eaten and art full, then thou
shalt bless the Lord thy God for the good land which
fie hath given thee.

11. Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God,
in not keeping his commandments and his judgments,
and his statutes, which I command thee this day :

12. Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast
built goodly houses, and dwelt therein ;

13. And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and
thy silver and thy gold is multiplied ; and all that thou
hast is multiplied :

14. Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget
the Lord thy God, which brought thee forth out of the
land of Egypt, from the house of bondage ;

15. Who led thee through that great and terrible
wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions,
and drought, where there was no water ; who brought
thee forth water out of the rock offtint ;

16. Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna,
which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee,
and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy
latter end ;

17. And thou say in thine heart. My power and the
might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.

18. But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God:
for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that
he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy
fathers, as it is this day.

19. And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord

224 DEUTERONOMY VIII. 1— 2U.

thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them,
and worship them, I testify against you this day, that
ye shall surely perish.

20. As the nations which the Lord destroy eth before
your face, so shall ye perish : because ye woidd not be
obedient nnto the voice of the Lord your God.

Again, and again, does Moses reiterate the
same injunctions to obedience, and fortify them
by the same convincing recollections of past and
abounding mercies : " Line upon line, line upon
line, precept upon precept, precept upon pre-
cept," seems to have been his motto. And verily
never were such powerful motives adduced, or
such unanswerable appeals brought forward, as
are recorded in the wonderful book upon which
we are commenting. Bread out of the air,
water out of the rock, were among the common
mercies of every day's existence. Yet notwith-
standing this, well did Moses forewarn them,
that a time might come, when all should be for-
gotten, and when even the Giver of them all,
the great Jehovah, should be no more remem-
bered. And when was so fatal a catastrophe to
be peculiarly watched against and dreaded ? Not
at those seasons when we should most expect it ;
when they were driven before the face of their
enemies as chaff before the wind ; when they
should be carried away captive, and the iron

DEUTERONOMY VIII. 1—20. 225

should once more enter into their soul ; when
they should be oppressed by misery, and pes-
tilence, and famine, so that " the delicate woman
■which would not adventure to set the sole of her
foot upon the ground for delicateness and ten-
derness, even her eye should be evil toward the
husband of her bosom and toward her son and
toward her daughter." No, let us listen and
learn : " When thy herds and thy flocks multiply,
and thy gold and thy silver is multiplied, and all
that thou hast is multiplied ;" " when thou hast
eaten and art full," then, " beware, that thou
forget not the Lord thy God," in the good land
which He hath given thee! What an unex-
pected caution ! What a knowledge of human
nature, have we here ! When we are full ! O
ungrateful heart to forget the hand that iills
thee ! 0 fallen nature that spurns the arm
which would lift thee up ! Surely, then, it was a
wise man's prayer. Give me not riches, " lest 1
be full, and deny thee, and say, who is the
Lord ?" *

Are we blessed with " food convenient for
us ?" let us thank God from the very ground of
our hearts, that He has given us neither poverty
nor riches, and let us earnestly, thankfully en-
deavour to employ even our one talent to the
* Prov. XXX. 9.

L 5

226 DEUTERONOMY IX. 1—6.

honour and glory of Him, who will shortly come
to take account of his servants, that we may
hear the approving sentence, " Well, thou good
servant, because thou hast been faithful in a veri/
little, have thou authority over ten cities."

EXPOSITION LIII.

Deuteronomy ix. 1 — 6.

1 . Hear, O Israel ; Thou art to pass over Jordan
this day, to go in to possess nations greater and mightier
than thyself, cities great and fenced up to heaven.

2. A people great and tall, the children of the
Anakims, whom thou knowest, and of whom thou hast
heard say. Who can statid before the children of Anak ?

3. Understand therefore this day, that the Lord thy
God is he which goeth over before thee ; as a consuming

fire he shall destroy them, and he shall bring them down
before thy face : so shalt thou drive them out, and
destroy them quickly, as the Lord hath said unto thee.

4. Speak not thou in thine heart, after that the
Lord thy God hath cast them out from before thee,
saying. For my righteousness the Lord hath brought me
in to possess this land : but for the wickedness of these
nations, the Lord doth drive them out from before thee.

5. Not for thy righteousness, or for the ujmghtness

DEUTERONOMY IX. 1—6. 227

of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land : but
for the wickedness of these nations the Lord thy God
doth drive them out from before thee, and that he may
perform the word ivhich the Lord sware unto thy fathers,
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

6. Understand, therefore, that the Lord thy God
giveth thee not this good land to possess it for thy
righteousness ; for thou art a stiffneeked people.

{Here may he read the remainder of the chapter. '\

How continually did Moses find it necessary
to repeat to the Israelites this mortifying truth,
that they had deserved nothing of all the good
things they were about to receive at the hands
of God ! He had before reminded them that it
was not for their numhers, that they were to be
thus blessed and prospered, he now assures them
that it was not for their righteousness, adding the
true, but humiliating declaration, " For thou art
a stiffneeked people." So powerful, so domi-
neering a feeling is this at all times, in the human
breast, this sin of obstinate self- righteousness,
that notwithstanding all the remonstrances of
Moses, the children of Israel appear, as a nation,
never to have relinquished it. In vain did he
tell them, and he repeats it again, in the latter
part of the chapter, verse twenty-four, " Ye have
been rebellious against the Lord from the day
that I knew you ;" they would not acknowledge

228 DEUTERONOMY IX. 1— G.

the disparaging truth, they considered that great
mercies were necessarily a proof of great de-
servings, and were ready at all times to say to
every other nation under heaven, " Stand by, I
am holier than thou." How difficult is it, when
God has greatly prospered us, to avoid this sin,
to feel not elated, but humbled, at the thought
that we are the undeserving recipients of mercies
so disproportioned to our merits ! If there be
any one consideration, which more than another,
should fill the heart of a Christian with feelings
of his own utter worthlessness, it is the thought
of the infinite disproportion between his mercies
and his merits. It is impossible to read the
beautiful and daily thanksgiving of our Church,
the reference to our " creation, preservation, and
all the blessings of this life," and to the still
higher mercies, " the redemption of the world
by our Lord Jesus Christ, the means of grace
and the hope of glory ;" and to say, through
Divine grace, these are mine, without shrinking
abashed at the view of our own hearts, and lives,
and conversation : without most deeply rejoicing
that there is One, who has condescended to be
called, " The Lord our righteousness." Yes,
blessed be God, that for such sinners, there is
such a Saviour ; that for creatures so helpless,
so polluted, so sinful, there is a Creator, so pow-

DEUTERONOMY IX. 1—6. 229

erful and, tbrough tbe atoning merits of the same
Redeemer, so entirely reconciled.

But there is yet another lesson to be learnt
from the passages before us. Observe how pri-
vileges imply duties, and how duties become prac-
ticable, only through privileges. Moses assures
the people, at once, of two most important facts,
viz. that God will fight for them, and yet, that
they must fight for themselves. They are to
begin their warfare by the destruction of a people,
of whom they had already said, " Who can stand
against the children of Anak ?" What hope was
there, then, of victory ? Simply this. " as a con-
suming fire, God shall destroy them, and He
shall bring them down before thy face." Then,
all was ready done for them ; not at all : observe
what follows, — " So shalt thoii drive them out and
destroy them quickly, as the Lord hath said unto
thee." Mark, then, how perfectly privileges and
duties coalesce. It is because God will destroy
their enemies, that they are themselves to fight
against them ; it is because " God will bring
them down," that thei/ are to strive and struggle
for the victory. So is it with ourselves. It is
because the Lord Jesus Christ will open the
door, that we are to " strive to enter in at the
straight gate." It is because the same Saviour
has said, " It is your Father's good pleasure to

230 DEUTERONOMY X. 12—22.

give you the kingdom," that we are " the rather,
brethren, to give diligence to make our calling
and election sure." It is because it is promised,
" that we shall be more than conquerors through
Him that loved us," that we are to " pray
without ceasing," and to watch without slumber-
ing, and to fight without wearying, and to labour
without resting ; until duties fade before pri-
vileges, and we inherit that eternal life which is
the gift of God through Jesus Christ ; and Christ
shall be " all in all."

EXPOSITION LIV.
Deuteronomy x. 12 — 22.

[Here mag be read from verse 1, to verse 11,
inclusive.]

12. And noio, Israel, what doth the Lord thy God
require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to ivalk
in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the Lord
thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul.

13. To keep the commandments of the Lord, and his
statutes, which 1 command thee this day for thy good?

14. Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is

DEUTERONOMY X. 12—22. 231

the Lord's thy God, the earth also, with all that therein
is.

15. Onli/ the Lord had a delight in thy fathers to
love them, and he chose their seed after them, even you
above all people, as it is this day.

16. Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart,
and be no more stiffnecked.

Moses having again, as we have lately seen,
brought before the children of Israel their sins
and disobedience, and the Almighty's mercies to
them notwithstandino-, now once more urofes
upon them the great duty of obedience upon this
single plea, it is '■'■for thy good" If men would
but reflect and understand, no other argument
would ever be needed in persuading them to a
life of holiness ; we might with safety rest all
our exhortations upon this single truth, " It is
for thy good." And this, not only as regards
the far distant future, not only with reference to
eternity, but even in relation to time, to the
present hour that passes over us. The book of
Inspiration has declared, and all experience has
ratified the fact, that " the way of transgressors
is hard." While it is as certain and undeniable,
that religion's " ways are ways of pleasantness,
and all her paths are peace." Yet are we too
apt to overlook these trite and common truths,
and to consider the way of holiness as the

232 DEUTERONOMY X. 12-22.

irksome way, and the ways of transgressors, the
broad and flowery path, the road of pleasure.
But let any one, even a child, calmly consider
what course really adds the most even to his
present happiness, and he will assuredly not
come to a wrong result. For instance, let him
look back at the close of a day in which evil
tempers, passion, sullenness, disobedience, or self-
will have triumphed, and observe the feelings to
which they have given birth ; then let him reflect
on some other evening, when the day has been
spent obediently, affectionately, and usefully,
when his young heart has been drawn out in
love and kindness towards all around it, and
has been engaged in duties, as the offspring of
his love, toward those to whom they are due, or
arisen on the wings of prayer, and praise, and
gratitude to its God. Can any one for a moment
doubt which of these periods has been the hap-
piest.'' Will the youngest child in our families
even for an instant question it ? If you think
so, put the inquiry candidly to him, and you
will find that he will not hesitate a moment in
acknowledging which has been the happier day ;
he will have no shadow of a doubt which of the
two ways is for his good! No, the heart, with
all its blindness, and all its corruption, is not so
corrupt and blind as that. It can make none
10

DEUTERONOMY X. 12 — 22. 233

but a wilful mistake in this matter, and when it
says that the ways of God and his blessed statutes
and commands are not for its good, it knows it
speaks as falsely, as it does foolishly and pro-
fanely. The Lord keep us and ours from so
great a sin ; the Lord teach us that holiness, and
holiness alone, is both present and future hap-
piness,

17. For the Lord your God is God of gods, and
Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible,
which rewardeth not persons, nor taketh reward :

18. He doth execute the judgment of the fatherless
and widow, and loveth the stranger, in giving him food
and raiment.

19. Love ye therefore the stranger: for ye loere
strangers in the land of Egypt.

20. Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God; him shalt
thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and swear by
his name.

21. He is thy praise, and he is thy God, that hath
done for thee these great and terrible things, which
thine eyes have seen.

22. Thy fathers went down into Egypt with three-
score and ten persons : and now the Lord thy God hath
made thee as the stars of heaven for multitude.

Among the many precepts scattered through
this valuable address of Moses, few are more
aflfecting than the simple but beautiful exhorta-

234 DEUTERONOMY X. 12—22.

tion, " Love ye the stranger," and the recollec-
tion by which it is enforced, " For ye were
strangers in the land of Egypt." How ranch of
genuine kindness and of real christian hospi-
tality, would there be upon earth, if this precept,
so worthy even of our " better covenant," and
so often impressed upon us in the pages of the
New Testament, were uniformly and conscien-
tiously practised ! It is true that the Israelites
had a peculiar motive for this duty, which may
be literally unknown to us ; they had " been
strangers in a strange land," and, as Moses else-
where expresses it, " they had known the heart
of a stranger ;" but surely the Christian need
scarcely require so bitter an experience to urge
him to the fulfilment of this duty, for he cannot
have wandered many years in this cold world,
without feeling the truth of our Lord's own de-
claration, that " the world will," indeed, " love
its own," but that it has little kindness and af-
fection to spare for those whom He hath " chosen
out of the world," and who therefore seek and
court it not. He will, then, be well able to un-
derstand the value, at least, in some degree, of
the precept before us, and good would it indeed
be, if even by christian men it were more largely
practised.

It has been frequently said, that hospitality

DEUTERONOMY X. 12—22. 235

is the virtue of an age of barbarism ; if this be
so, it is, at least, a strong presumptive proof that
religion and civilisation do not travel hand in
hand together, so far as might have been hoped,
or so far as the word of God has commanded
them ; for when that word enjoins, " Be not
forgetful to entertain strangers," it speaks to all
times ; and when it urges us to " use hospitality
without grudging" and again, to be " given to
hospitality," it addresses equally all persons.
Let us then remember that this is a great, and
when performed from love to God, a most ac-
ceptable christian duty ; and will always be
found among the smaller, but not less lovely
fruit, growing on the lower branches of that
beauteous tree planted by our Lord, when, with
almost dying lips, he said, " A new commandment
I give unto you, That ye also love one another ;
as I have loved you, that ye also love one ano-
ther."

236 DEUTERONOMY XI. 1 — 17.

EXPOSITION LV.

Deuteronomy xi. 1 — 17.

1 . Therefore thou shall loce the Lord thy God, and
kee^) his charge, and his statutes, and his judgments,
and his commandments, alwaij.

2. And know ye this day : for I sjjeak not with your
children which have not known, and which have not
seen the chastisement of the Lord your God, his great-
ness, his mighty hand, and his stretched out arm,

3. And his miracles, and his acts, which he did in
the midst of Egypt, unto Pharaoh the king of Egypt,
and unto all his land ;

4. Arid what he did unto the army of Egypt, unto
their horses, and to their chariots : how he made the
water of the Red Sea to overflow them as they pursued
after you, and how the Lord hath destroyed them itnto
this day ;

5. And what he did unto you in the ivilderness, until
ye came unto this place ;

6. x4^)id what he did unto Dathan and Abiram, the
sons of Eliab, the son of Reuben : how the earth ojiened
her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their hous-
holds, and their tents, and all the substance that was
in their possession, in the midst of all Israel :

7. But your eyes have seen all the great acts of the
Lord which he did.

8. Therefore shall ye keep all the commandments
which I command you this day, that ye may be strong.

DEUTERONOMY XI. 1—17. 237

and go in and possess the land, lohither ye go to possess
it ;

9. And that ye may prolong your days in the land,
which the Lord sware unto your fathers to give unto
them and to their seed, a land that floweth with milk
and honey.

How widely different are the political views
and precepts of Moses, from those of every un-
inspired legislator. If the worldly-wise, or the
worldly-prudent, had been directed to inform
the Israelites what they should do, to " be strong,
and to go in, and possess the land," which was
now in the hands of their enemies, of all the
thousand injunctions which might have been pro-
pounded, however widely they might have dif-
fered from each other, we are quite certain, that
not one of them would in the least degree have
resembled this advice of Moses, " That ye may
be strong, and go in and possess the land, keep
all the commandments which I command you
this day." " Love the Lord thy God," and obey
his statutes, and you shall not only possess the
land, but your days shall be prolonged in it.
When will nations be governed upon such prin-
ciples as these ? When will the legislators of
the earth condescend to learn of the King of
heaven ? When will they believe that " holi-
ness," and holiness alone, really " exalteth a

238 DEUTERONOMY XI. 1—17.

nation," but. that " sin is a reproach to anj'
people ?" If this were once fully, deeply, indi-
vidually felt, how much more anxiety would
there be to raise the tone, and to extend far, far
more widely the limits of national religious
education ; how much more general a desire to
supply church accommodation for all ranks, " a
shepherd for every fold, and a fold for every
flock," in our thickly inhabited towns, and deeply
ignorant population ! An uninstructed people
must necessarily, from the depravity of the human
heart, be a disobedient people ; and a people
disobedient to God, can never be otherwise than
turbulent to their rulers, and offensive to all
around them.

10. For the land, whither thou goest in to j)ossess it,
is not as the land of Egypt, from whence ye came out,
where thou sowedst thy seed, and wateredst it with thy
foot, as a garden of herbs :

11. But the land, whither ye go to possess it, is a
land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain
of heaven :

12. A land which the Lord thy God careth for : the
eyes of the Lord thy God are always upon it, from the
beginning of the year even unto the end of the year.

13. And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken
diligently unto my com?nandtnents which I command
you this day, to love the Lord your God, and to serve
him with all your heart and with all your soul.

DEUTERONOMY XI. 1—17. 239

14. That I v: ill give you the rain of the land in his
due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou
mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil.

15. And I will send grass in thy fields for thy cattle,
that thou mayest eat and be full.

i&. Take heed to yourselves, that your heart he not
deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and
worship them;

17. And then the Lord's wrath be kindled against
you, and he shut up the heaven, that there be no rain,
and that the land yield not her fruit ; and lest ye
perish quickly from off the good land which the Lord
giveth you.

[Here may he read from chapter xi., verse 18,
to the end of chapter xii.]

Moses here endeavours still further to excite
the Israelites to a life of holy obedience, by de-
scribing to them the great superiority of the land
to which they were journeying, to that from
whence they had come out. He says Canaan is
not like Egypt, upon which the rain never falls,
but which must be constantly and laboriously
watered from the waters of the Nile, but in the
land of promise, God himself shall provide ; and
the early and the latter rain shall fall at his
bidding, and your seed shall spring up and grow,
man knoweth not how, and you shall gather in
your corn, and your wine, and your oil, and the
land shall indeed " flow with milk and honey."

6

240 DEUTERONOMY XL 1—17.

What a delightful prospect was this, and how
powerful an incentive to obedience, when the
Israelites were thus told that all depended upon
it, and that nothing but neglect of God's com-
mands, and forgetfulness of himself, could deprive
them of the inheritance that lay before them.
" Take heed to youi'selves, that your heart be
not deceived and ye turn aside," were the
warning words of their leader. And well might
they, and well may we cherish and profit by
them. We also, who are reconciled to God by
his Son, and united to the Saviour by a true and
living faith, have a blessed prospect lying before
us ; and whensoever we are tempted to turn
aside from following Him, who has purchased
for us an entrance into that fair and happy land,
we may rest assured 02ir hearts also are deceived.
Nothing but the grossest deception, the strongest
delusion that ever came from the father of lies,
could tempt us to prefer the present to the
future, time to eternity, earth to heaven. If,
then, we value that promised land, if we desire
to enjoy the full assurance of hope, that we shall
one day be numbered among its inhabitants, let
us prayerfully and perseveringly watch over our
hearts, that they be not deceived, by the cares,
and riches, and pleasures of this world. Let the
great end and object of our short existence here,

DEUTERONOMY XIII . 1-5. 241

be, having already a good hope, through grace,
to attain, by the sanctifying influences of the
Holy Spirit, to some blessed degree of meetness
for the kingdom, which God hath prepared for
all who love Him, and of conformity to that
Saviour, through whose merits alone we hope to
enter there.

EXPOSITION LVI.

Deuteronomy xiii. I — 5.

1 . If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer
of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder,

2. And the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof
he spake unto thee, saying. Let us go after other gods,
which thou hast not known, and let us serve them ;

3. Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that
prophet, or that dreamer of dreams : for the Lord your

God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord
your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

4. Ye shall walk after the Lord your God, and fear
him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice,
and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.

5. And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams,
shall he put to death; because he hath spoken to turn
rjou away from the Lord your God, which brought you

242 DEUTERONOMY XIII. 1—5.

out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the
house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which
the Lord thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt
thou put the evil away from the midst of thee.

[Here may be read from verse 6, to the end
of the chapter.^

The whole of this chapter is dedicated to one
deeply-important subject, the extreme peril of
idolatry, and the punishment to be inflicted on
those who should seduce the Israelites into it.
The whole chapter is divided into three parts ;
the first five verses, which we have just read,
offer the supposition, that the temptation to
idolatry should spring from a teacher, " A
prophet, or dreamer of dreams." The next six
verses, that the same delusion should be pro-
moted by a near and dear relation ; " Thy bro-
ther, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy
daughter, or thy friend, which is as thine own
soul." While the remainder of the chapter is
occupied in declaring what should be done, in
the case of a neighbouring village or city, being
led into this abominable iniquity. In all cases,
death, and nothing short of death, was to be the
punishment of the delinquents ; so strongly did
the Almighty invariably mark his abhorrence
of this most insulting sin, and so fearfully did

DEUTERONOMY XIII. 1—5. 243

He manifest his right to the title of a " jealous
God."

But there is a peculiarity in the verses we
have read, which well demands a few moments'
consideration.

It is here supposed, and the supposition is a
very extraordinary one, that some prophet, or
dreamer of dreams, should endeavour thus to
lead the Israelites astray. And it is, moreover,
stated, that this deceiver may have much to re-
commend him to their credit and belief; it is
even said, that the sign or the wonder, which he
gives as a proof of his credibility, may actually
come to pass, and yet the Almighty says, " Ye
shall not," even under such circumstances as
these, " hearken unto his word," nor should this
fact in any degree justify those who were deluded
by it.

At first sight we are apt to imagine, that the
easiest way for the Almighty to have prevented
any such mischievous and dangerous results,
would have been by preventing the sign or the
wonder from coming to pass, since it was so
evidently wrought to establish a falsehood. But
this is not the method of God's dealings with his
people in any age ; He does not keep them from
temptation, but with the temptation he sends a
way to escape. So it is expressly inferred by

M 2

244 DEUTERONOMY XIII. 1—5.

Moses, that this delusion was permitted by the
Ahuighty, and the reason is openly avowed in
the verses before us ; " The Lord your God
proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord
with all your heart and with all your soul."
God is very jealous of his word; and however
plausible be the arguments of those who gainsay
it, this by no means exculpates any who are de-
ceived. How striking an instance of this have
we in the young prophet of Bethel, who, after
he had resisted the pressing invitation of king
Jeroboam, to eat bread in the city, in which God
had himself commanded him to eat no bread,
was permitted to fall by the falsehood of the
wicked old prophet, who said, that an angel had
commanded him to recall him, and to make him
eat bread in his house. God had given him his
own word, but He did not prevent him from
being deluded by the man who contradicted it.

So again, in after ages, we find that delusions,
and misi'epresentations,and contradictions of God's
truth, were not prevented, neither were Christians
preserved from them, except by the ordinary
means of God's written word. And that this
was not only permitted, but explained and jus-
tified, is clear from that declaration of St. Paul,
" There must needs be heresies among you, that
those which are approved, may be made manifest

DEUTERONOMY XIII. 1—5. 245

among you." The great lesson to be learnt at
all times, and by all persons, is evidently this, —
the Almighty has in the Scriptures of Truth,
declared plainly and unequivocally, all the great
doctrines necessary to salvation. He who made
the human heart, cannot surely be supposed to
have addressed himself to it in language which
that heart, when resigning itself to the teaching
of his Holy Spirit, cannot understand. If, there-
fore, there arise even a prophet who shall con-
tradict the revealed word, though his life be
apparently holy, and his teaching plausible ; and
it were possible that his signs and wonders should
come to pass, it would not, in the slightest degree,
form any reasonable excuse for the poorest or
humblest Christian to be misled by him. The
feeblest believer has a test, to which he is bound
to bring the assertions even of the most learned
of his teachers ; " To the law and to the tes-
timony, if they speak not according to this rule,
it is because there is no light in them." This is
the great bulwark of Protestantism, and, more-
over, of all true religion, and however it may be
the fashion of the present day to repudiate it,
it is as consistent with our " reasonable service "
as men, as with our rights as Christians. Long
may it please God to preserve it to us, as amongst

246 DEUTERONOMY XV. 1—15.

the first of our privileges, while he expects it
from us, as one of the first of our duties.

When, therefore, we find doctrines or precepts
enunciated, even by " a prophet," do not let us
be misled by the fact that he is a prophet : let
no appeals to his character, or his position, or
his learning, or any other adventitious circum-
stance, in the least degree influence our minds,
but let us simply turn in prayer and faith to
God's blessed word, and there learn whether the
doctrines brought before us are in full accord-
ance with it ; if they are, let us unhesitatingly
adopt them, and if not, let us as unhesitatingly
reject them. Wisdom will in the end " be jus-
tified of all her children."

EXPOSITION LVII.

[^Here may he read chapter xiv.]

Deuteronomy xv. 1 — 15.

1, At the end of every seven years thou shalt make
a release.

2. And this is the manner of the release : Every
creditor that lendeth ought unto his neighbour shall

DEUTERONOMY XV. 1—15. 247

release it ; he shall not exact it of his neighbour,
or of his brother ; because it is called the Lord's re-
lease.

3. Of a foreigner thou mayest exact it again : hut
that which is thine with thy brother thine hand shall
release ;

4. Save when there shall be no j)Oor among you ; for
the Lord shall greatly bless thee in the land which the
Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance to jjossess
it.

5. Only if thou carefully hearken unto the voice of
the Lord thy God, to observe to do all these command-
ments which I command thee this day.

6. For the Lord thy God blesseth thee, as he pro-
mised thee : and thou shalt lend unto many nations,
but thou shalt not borrow ; and thou shalt reign over
many nations, hut they shall not reign over thee.

7 . If there he among you a poor man of one of thy
brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the
Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine
heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother :

8. But thou shalt open thine hand ivide nnto him,
and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that
which he wanteth.

9. Beware that there he not a thought in thy wicked
heart, saying. The seventh year, the year of release, is
at hand ; and thine eye he evil against thy poor bro-
ther, and thou givest him nought ; and he cry unto the
Lord against thee, and it be sin unto thee.

10. Thou shalt surely give him, and thine heart
shall not he grieved when thou givest unto him : because
that for this thing the Lord thy God shall bless thee

248 DEUTERONOMY XV. 1 — 15.

in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand
unto.

1 1 . For the poor shall never cease out of the land :
therefore I command thee, saying. Thou shall open
thine hand ivide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to
thy needy, in thy land.

12. And if thy brother, an Hebrew man, or an
Hebrew woman, be sold unto thee, and serve thee six
years ; then in the seventh year thou shalt let him go
free from thee.

13. And when thou sendest him out free from thee,
thou shalt not let him go away empty :

14. Thou shalt furnish him liberally out of thy flock,
and out of thy floor, and out of thy winepress : of that
wherewith the Lord thy God hath blessed thee thou shalt
give unto him.

15. And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bond-
man in the land of Egypt, and the Lord thy God
redeemed thee : therefore I command thee this thing
to-day.

When we read such laws as those that have
now been brought before us, and in which slavery
is evidently recognised, without disapproval, by
the Almighty, we must always bear in mind the
state of the world when they were promulgated-
In the history of all the great nations of an-
tiquity, whether Chaldeans, Egyptians, Persians,
Greeks or Romans, we find slavery counte-
nanced, and the laws by which it was regulated
bearing not a moment's comparison with those

DEUTERONOMY XV. 1—15. 249

we have just read, for kindness and considera-
tion. Among other nations, the slavery was
perpetual, and the power of life and death
usually in the hands of the master. To the Is-
raelites, such an atrocity as the latter was un-
known, and the rigours of captivity were greatly
mitigated, both by the manner in which they
were enjoined to treat their captors, and also
by the certain liberation which awaited them
every seventh year. Still under every circum-
stance, with our more enlightened views, and
kindlier dispensation, slavery must ever be con-
sidered as an accursed thing; and happy is it
for our country, that she has been led, in perfect
acquiescence with the spirit of the christian
revelation, to destroy, even at a great national
sacrifice, every vestige of it from the face of her
almost boundless dominions. For this God be
praised, and may He permit us to find a rich
reward in the far wider extension among our-
selves, of that spiritual liberty, that release from
a worse than Egyptian bondage, wherewith
Christ makes his people free.

But we must observe still more closely, the
merciful regulations we have been reading. We
are told that every seventh year, all who had
borrowed money, should, if unable to pay, be
released from the debt ; and that the knowledge

M 5

250 DEUTERONOMY XV. 1—15,

of this should not prevent the rich man from
lending to his poorer brother, toward the close
of the six years, from the fear that the debt
should be cancelled instead of paid; nor that
he should give grudgingly, but readily, and
cheerfully, or he should receive no blessing him-
self from the hands of the Almighty. Observe,
then, how scrutinizingly God examines the spirit
in which our duties are performed. It might
have been thought a great demand, that men
should lend, when there was so small a prospect
of re-payment, but this is not sufficient ; they
must lend, and lend cheerfully, at God's bidding,
even when the loan should certainly become a
gift. The reason given for this, is, " For the
poor shall never cease out of the land, therefore
I command thee, saying. Thou shalt open thine
hand wide unto thy brother."

This declaration of infinite wisdom, that " the
poor shall never cease out of the land," appears
to be an eternal truth. In vain have men in
every age attempted to falsify it, however appa-
rently wise may have been the means, however
palpable, or however recondite, have been the
principles, upon which they have acted, they
have utterly and equally failed of their object;
the poor have never ceased out of the land, they
yet remain, and have remained, and even in-

DEUTERONOMY XVIII. 15—22. 251

creased during years of such remarkable pros-
perity, as no nation before has ever witnessed.
And doubtless, despite all the worldly maxims of
political economy, they shall remain unto the
end of time, as a proof of the everlasting verities
of God's word, and as a continual means afforded
to his people to inherit his own peculiar bene-
diction : " Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of the
least of these my brethren, ye did it unto me."

EXPOSITION LYIII.

[Here may he read from verse 16, chapter xv.
to verse 14, of chapter xviii. inclusive,^

Deuteronomy xviii. 15 — 22.

15. The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a
Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like
unto me ; unto him ye shall hearken ;

16. According to all that thou desiredst of the Lord
thy God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying.
Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God,
neither let me see this great fire any more, that 1 die
not.

17. And the Lord said unto me, They have loell
spoken that which they have spoken.

252 DEUTERONOMY XVIII. 15—22.

18. I will raise them up a Prophet Jrom among their
brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his
mouth ; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall
command him.

Very remarkable is the prophecy contained
in these words, and full of matter of deep, and
serious import. You will recollect the circum-
stance referred to by Moses, that when the people
stood around Mount Sinai, and the sounds of
the trumpet, and the mighty thunderings, and
the terrible and unearthly voices were heard,
the Israelites were completely panic-stricken,
and prayed Moses to intercede for them, that
they might no more hear the voice of the great
Jehovah, but that the prophet might stand as a
mediator between God and them, and repeat
to them all that the Lord should speak unto
him.

It pleased God to listen to this petition, and
to promise it should be as they desired ; and of
this, Moses here distinctly reminds them. He
moreover assures them that the Almighty will
be, as He always is, even better than his pro-
mise; that He will not only now, as He had
already done, speak to them entirely through
the instrumentality of Moses, but that when
again He saw fit, in infinite wisdom, to reveal
another covenant, and establish another dispen-

DEUTERONOMY XVIII. 15—22. 253

sation, He could still do it, not amid the visible
glories of Deity, but shrouded under the veil of
humanity. " I will raise them up a prophet from
among- their brethren, like unto thee, and will
put my words in his mouth," is the language of
the Most High. Herein was another announce-
ment of that great first promise of blessedness
to our fallen race, to be conveyed to us, through
" the seed of the woman." Here was a suffi-
ciently plain intimation, that when the Almighty,
in the fulness of time, should abrogate the laws
which now were given, and bestow a new code,
more fitted for the advanced stage of knowledge,
and civilisation, to which his creatures should
have attained, He would act towards them as
He had already done. And so it came to pass.
In these last days, God has spoken unto us by
his Son, who, although He " thought it no
robbery to be equal with God," " took upon Him
the form of a servant," and presented himself to
men, in such a shape as their corrupt and timid
hearts could bear, instead of appalling them by
those glorious visions, the brightness of which
was too much for fallen humanity.

We find this prophecy so far understood and
recollected, by the Israelites, in after ages, that
when John the Baptist com uienced his wonder-
ful career, the priests and Levites distinctly

254 DEUTERONOMY XVIII. 15—22.

asked liim, " Art thou that Prophet?^' referring,
as has generally been supposed, to the words
before us; while, when our Lord performed one
of the most remarkable of his miracles, they
who had witnessed it, spontaneously, and, it
would appear, universally, cried out, " This is of
a truth that Prophet that should come into the
world." *

19. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will
not hearken unto my words which he shall sjjeak in my
name, I will require it of him.

20. But the prophet, which shall presume to speak
a word in my name, which J have not commanded him
to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods,
even that prophet shall die.

21. And if thou say in thine heart. How shall we
know the word which the Lord hath not spoken ?

22. W^hen a prophet speaketh in the name of the
Lord, if the thing foil oio not, nor come to pass, that is
the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the pro-
phet hath spoken it presumptuously : thou shalt not
he afraid of him.

Moses here concludes, by declaring what
should be the fate of those who reject the pro-
mised prophet, " I will require it of them;" and
then answers the natural objection, How shall
we know Him ? by assuring them, that if the

* John vi. 14.

DEUTERONOMY XVIII. 15—22. 255

thing which he predicted should not come to
pass, he was not to be received.

It is very important to remark, that in the
last portion of Scripture upon which we com-
mented, it was distinctly stated, that the signs
of a false teacher might come to pass, but would
not be sufficient evidence of his truth, if he
denied or contravened the written word of God.
The marks of a true teacher given above, by no
means interfere with this, although at first sight
they appear to contradict it. It is not said, that
they should believe him if his words were ful-
filled, but that they should reject him if his
words were unfulfilled. Perhaps, because it is
possible, that some coincidence, however im-
probable, might occasion the apparent fulfilment
of a sign or a prophecy, but nothing within the
range of nature could prevent that from coming
to pass, which the God of Nature had really
spoken. This, therefore, was a test which might
with confidence be relied on. It was no proof,
for instance, that the Egyptian magicians were
to be believed, because the water became blood
at their command, but it would have been quite
sufficient ground for disbelieving the divine
mission of Moses, if, when he promised Pharaoh,
" To-morrow the Lord shall do this thing," the
Lord had not done that thing on the morrow.
7

256 DEUTERONOMY XVIII. IJ— 22.

Such tests as these, however, did not stand
alone, but so perfect were to be the proofs at-
tendant upon " tliat 'prophet^' Avliom the Al-
mighty here j)roniised, that God does not hesitate
to say, " I will require it of hiui," who does not
receive him. Most thoughtfully, and seriously,
should men in every age lay this to heart. It is
futile to say, they are not answerable for their
religious opinions, when the Almighty has not
scrupled thus palpably to prove that they are,
or a God of justice could not thus require it of
them. May our prayer be, Lord, lead us into
all truth, teach us to know, and to receive, and
to love and to obey " that prophet^'' whom thou
hast, in so especial a manner, sent into the world.
May we learn to see thy glory, " in the face of
Jesus Christ," and may He be " made unto us
wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and
redemption."

DEUTERONOMY XX. 1—8. 257

EXPOSITION LIX.

[Here may he read chapter xix.]
Deuteronomy xx. 1 — 8.

1. When thou goest out to battle against thine
ene7nies, and seest horses, and chariots, and a people
more than thou, be not afraid of them : for the Lord
thy God is with thee, which brought thee up out of the
land of Hgypt.

2. And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the
battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto
the people,

3. And shall say unto them. Hear, 0 Israel, ye ap-
proach this day unto battle against your enemies : let
not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tretnble,
neither be ye terrified because of them ;

4. For the Lord your God is he that goeth with
you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.

We have here some of the many directions by
■which the Israelites were to be regulated in their
approaching wars. The first of these is, " Be
not afraid," — a most essential qualification in a
warrior, and placed here upon its only right
foundation, trust in God. For as Moses de-
clares, " He it is that goeth with you, to fight

258 DEUTERONOMY XX. 1-8.

for you against your enemies, to save you." Such
is also the direction given by our Lord and
Saviour, to tlie christian warrior, commencing
upon his difficult and dangerous campaigns :
" Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it
be afraid," for " stronger is He that is in you,
than he that is in the world." In both cases,
the great secret of success is this, whether it be
the Israelitish warrior, or the christian warrior,
each is taught to look out of himself for victory,
to turn the eye of faith to Him who invariably
undertakes all for his people, and to trust neither
to his shield, nor his bovv, but to the Lord his
God who goeth with him. So we are again ex-
pressly told, " This is the victory that overcometh
the world, even our faith," not our fighting but
our faith, because this unites us to the strong
for strength, and to the invincible for victory.
This is in fact the only feeling, that, while it
ensures to us the triumph, can, at the same time,
enable us to fulfil the command, " Be not afraid."
When we consider that we, the fallen children of
fallen parents, are called to " wrestle, not against
flesh and blood, but against principalities, against
powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this
world, against spiritual wickedness in high
places," * or, in other words, against all the spi-
* Ejahes. vi. 12.

DEUTERONOMY XX. 1—8. 259

ritual powers of sin and Satan, leagued for our
destruction, our hearts would inevitably fail us,
and we should naturally inquire, How can I
stand where thousands who have preceded me
have fallen ? How blessed and interesting is
the reply drawn from the word of God himself!
" Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit,
saith the Lord." The weakest Christian hearing
and believing this, thanks God, and takes
courage ; goes on his way rejoicing, conquering
and to conquer ; knowing that there is no enemy
so persevering, no foe so powerful, as not to
yield to the arm, and fall before the strength
of Omnipotence, and these are engaged in his
defence.

5. And the officers shall speak unto the people, say-
ing. What man is there that hath built a new house,
and hath not dedicated it ? let him go and rettirn to
his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man
dedicate it.

6. And what man is he that hath planted a vineyard,
and hath not yet eaten of it ? let him also go and
return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and
another man eat of it.

7. And what man is there that hath betrothed a wife,
and hath not taken her ? let him go and return unto
his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man
take her.

8. And the officers shall speak further unto the

260 DEUTERONOMY XX. 1—8.

peoj)le, and they shall sarj, What man is there that is
fearful and fainthearted ? let him go and return unto
his house, lest his brethren's heart faint as well as his
heart.

How kind, and merciful, and considerate, are
these directions ! The Almighty would permit
none to engage in his warfare, who should bring
a reluctant heart. Nay, He had even respect
to the infirmities of his creatures. If any man
were fearful, or faint-hearted, he was to return
to his house. As the word of God has said with
regard to charity, " The Lord loveth a cheerful
giver," so here it is evident, that He loveth only
a willing and ready follower. It cannot too
often be impressed upon us, that the spirit in
which we obey the Lord, stamps the deed. " He
who loveth father or mother more than me," are
our Lord's own words, " is not worthy of me."
He will, in fact, accept of no divided affections,
for, as has been well and truly said, " Our God
must have a whole heart, or have none, but yet
He will accept a broken one."

May we each watch carefully and inquire ear-
nestly, what he is in reality giving to God. Is
it a whole heart that we endeavour to offer ? or
is it one divided between the vineyard we have
planted, the house we have builded, the wife we
have betrothed, and the God whom we profess

DEUTERONOMY XXVI. 1—11. 261

to serve, with all our heart, and with all our
mind, and with all our strength ? If so, " let
not that man think that he shall receive anything
of the Lord." It is only when we can say, with
a whole and undivided heart, of the Lord Jesus
Christ, " I am his," that the same Saviour can
say of us. They are mine, and " shall be mine in
the day when I make up my jewels."

\^Her€ may he read from verse 9, chapter xx., to
the end of chapter xxv.]

EXPOSITION LX.

Deuteronomy xxvi. 1 — 11.

1 . And it shall be, when thou art come in unto the
land which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inhe-
ritance, and possessest it, and dwellest therein;

2. That thou shall take of the first of all the fruit
of the earth, which thou shall bring of thy land that
the Lord thy God giveth thee, and shall put it into a
basket, and shall go unto the place which the Lord thy
God shall choose to place his name there.

3. And thou shalt go unto the priest that shall be
in those days, and say unto him, I profess this day
unto the Lord thy God, that I am come unto the country
which the Lord sioare unto our fathers for to give us.

262 DEUTERONOMY XXVI. 1 — 11.

4. And the jyf'i^st shall take the basket out of thine
hand, and set it down be/ore the altar of the Lord thy
God.

5. And thou shall speak and say before the Lord
thy God, A Syrian ready to j)^ fish was my father, and
he went down into Eyyjit, and sojourned there with a

few, and became there a nation, great, mighty, and
populous :

6. And the Egyptians evil entreated us, and afflicted
us, and laid upon us hard bondage.

We have here an account of a very interesting
ceremony, upon a portion of which we have
already spoken in the book of Leviticus, (xxiii.
10,) when the waving of the sheaf of the first
fruits of the harvest before the Lord was com-
manded. But there was now a very instructive
addition made to it. Besides the first fruits of
the corn, the Israelites were commanded, each
individual for himself, to gather the first of their
ripening figs, and grapes, and pomegranates, and
olives, and all their other fruits, and placing
them in a basket, to carry them to the priest to
offer them up as a thank-offering to the Al-
mighty, before they began to gather for them-
selves. This offering was to be accompanied by
a very humble avowal of their low and insig-
nificant origin, and of the great things God had
done for them. Each was to recall to mind the

DEUTERONOMY XXVI. 1—11. 263

situation of his banished progenitor, and to ac-
knowledge, " A Syrian ready to perish was my
father ;" reminding us most powerfully, when
contrasted with the prosperous state in which
they then were, of the language of that very
ancestor himself, when, toward the close of his
remarkable career, he exclaimed, " With my
staff I passed over this Jordan, and behold, now
I am become two bands." The Israelite was also
openly to avow that the great promise of the
Almighty to his nation was fulfilled, and that he
was a resident in that land which the Lord had
given to his forefathers. Thus proclaiming most
solemnly and most publicly that nothing had
failed of all that the God of truth had predicted.

7. And tuken we cried unto the Lord God of our
fathers, the Lord heard our voice, and looked on our
affliction, and our labour, and our oppression :

8. And the Lord brought us forth out of ilyypt
with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm,
and ivith great terribleness, and with signs, and with
wonders :

9. And he hath brought tis into this place, and hath
given us this land, even a land that foireth ivith milk
and honey.

10. And now, behold, I have brought the frstfruits
of the land, which thou, O Lord, hast given me. And
thou shalt set it before the Lord thy God, and worship
before the Lord thy God.

264 DEUTERONOMY XXVI. 1—11.

1 1 • And thou shall rejoice in every yood thing which
the Lord thy God hath given unto thee, and unto thine
house, thou, and the Levite, and the stranger that is
among you.

The Israelite, in tliis ceremony of bringing
" the first of all the fruits of the earth " unto the
Lord, was not only, as we have seen, to acknow-
ledge his poor and lowly origin, but also the
great and good things which the Lord his God
had done for him. He was, therefore, to recount
the mercies of which he had been partaker, when
brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and
a stretched out arm, and to acknowledge that
all he had, and all he was, came equally from
God.

He was, after making this proper acknowledg-
ment, to worship the Lord, and then to return,
and rejoice with his family, in all the good
things which God had given him. What a
pleasing picture of family religion and domestic
holiness ! Never are we in so fit a state of mind,
to enjoy the bounties with which God has blessed
us, as when we can, and do, the most unhesi-
tatingly refer all to Him, and delight in every,
even the least of our temporal mercies, because
it has come to us from the One great source of
every good and perfect gift. Of how much hap-
piness do men deprive themselves, through ig-
10

DEUTERONOMY XXVI. 1-11. 265

norance of this great duty, and most blessed privi-
lege. If the wise man could speak of the delight of
" a dinner of herbs where love is," even that love
which man can bear to man ; with what truth
may we speak with delight of the humblest abode
and the most temperate meal, where the love of
God is ; of that gracious Being, Avho so loved the
world that He gave his only-begotten Son, to
the end that all that believe in Him, should not
perish, but have everlasting life : the love of that
Saviour who hath first loved us, and given him-
self for us! Surely if" God is love," and if love
will constitute the great happiness of heaven,
earth must then come nearest heaven, when the
love of God shed abroad in our hearts, by the
Spirit which He hath given us, sanctifies every
domestic pleasure, diminishes every trial, and, as
it were, consecrates the first-fruits of every
bounty, and every comfort, and every enjoyment,
to Himself

[Here may he read from verse 12, chapter xxvi.
to the end of the chapter. '[

266 DEUTERONOMY XXVII. 1—10.

EXPOSITION LXI.

Deuteronomy xxvii. 1 — 10.

1. And Moses with the elders of Israel commanded
the people, saying, Keep all the commandments which
I command you this day.

2. And it shall be on the day when ye shall pass
over Jordan unto the land which the Lord thy God
giveth thee, that thou shall set vp the great stones, and
plaister them with plaister :

3. And thou shall write upon them all the ivords of
this law, when thou art passed over, that thou mayest
go in unto the land which the Lord thy God giveth
thee, a land that floweth with milk and honey ; as
the Lord God of thy fathers hath promised thee.

4. Therefore it shall be, when ye be gone over
Jordan, that ye shall set up these stones, which I com-
mand you this day, in mount Ebal, and thou shalt
plaister them with plaister.

5. And there shalt thou build an altar unto the Lord
thy God, an altar of stones : thou shalt not lift up
any iron tool upon them.

6. Thou shalt build the altar of the Lord thy God
of whole stones : and thou shalt offer burnt offerings
thereon unto the Lord thy God:

7. And thou shalt off er peace offering s, and shalt eat
there, and rejoice before the Lord thy God.

DEUTERONOMY XXVII. 1—10. 267

8. And thou shalt ivrite upon the stones all the words
oj" this law very "plainly.

9. And Moses and the priests the Levites spake
unto all Israel, saying. Take heed, and hearken, 0
Israel ; this day thou art become the people of the Lord
thy God.

10. Thou shalt therefore obey the voice of the Lord
thy God, and do his commandments and his statutes,
which I command thee this day.

In the verses we have just read, two remark-
able directions were given to the Israelites, to
be observed immediately upon their arrival at the
promised land. The first was, that they were to
erect a pillar of " great stones and plaister them
with plaister," or, as it might have been trans-
lated, " cement them with cement." And upon
this pillar they were to engrave " very plainly "
all the words of this law, probably referring
particularly to the law of the ten commandments.
They were also to build an altar there, and to
offer thereon burnt offerings unto the Lord their
God. The latter was contrary to the law already
given, which forbad the building of any altar
except that at the tabernacle, and, therefore, no
doubt there was some peculiar and especial
reason for this singular command. Probably
it was thus directed, that the pillar and the altar
should stand together, that when the people

26S DEUTERONOMY XXVII. 1—10.

Lelield tlie commandments, and felt, as eacli
would, alas ! naturally feel, that he was living
in the daily breach of them, he might turn with
confidence, or at least with hope, to that altar
which typified the great atonement, and look to
a more perfect obedience, a better righteousness
than his own for pardon and peace. Such, at
any rate, is the lesson which we may, as Chris-
tians, gather from it. Never can we think of
the commandments of the Almighty, as David
gays, so " exceeding broad," without a deep and
self-accusing consciousness of our poor and im-
perfect performance of them ; therefore, never
let us turn our eyes from the commandments
neglected, broken, or at the best, but miserably
and imperfectly fulfilled, without casting a look
of grateful faith to that altar which we possess,
and of which the apostle said," We have an altar,
of which they have no right to eat, who serve
the tabernacle," even the Lord Jesus Christ,
at once our altar and our sacrifice. He who
would, and with justice, experience only feelings
of despair, when contemplating a broken law,
may do more even than hope, when he surveys
its perfect fulfilment in the obedience unto death
of a perfect Saviour, and may not only exclaim
with Thomas, " My Lord and my God," but
with every accepted saint, and every glorified
spirit, " The Lord our righteousness."

DEUTERONOMY XXYIL 1—10. 2G9

While enjoying the comfort which this view
naturally affords us as Christians, let us ever
bear in mind that the pillar of the law stood
close to the altar of atonement, by no means in-
terfering, and yet in remarkable proximity the
one to the other. May we deduce from it, the
important practical lesson, that while we look
to our altar, and to that alone, for our acceptance
with God, we should never overlook the pillar
of the law, as containing our rule of life. As
those who have received much, may we desire
to render much ; and as she who had " been for-
given much," was remarkable, above all other?,
in loving much, so may our hearts feel, and our
actions testify, that grateful love to God, which
will ever manifest itself in a consistent, holy,
self-denying obedience to every word that pro-
ceedeth out of the mouth of God. Thus shall
we, through Divine grace, be enabled to manifest
something of that holy feeling which induced
the psalmist to exclaim, not only with truth, but
with fervour, " The law of thy mouth is better
unto me than thousands of gold and silver."*

[Mere may be read from verse 11, chapter xxvii.,
to the end of the chapter. ~\

* Ps. cxix. 72.

270 DEUTERONOMY XXVIII. 1—11.

EXPOSITION LXII.

Deuteronomy xxviii. 1 — 14.

1. And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken
diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe
and to do allhis commandments which I command thee
this day, that the Lord thy God %vill set thee on high
above all nations of the earth :

2. And all these blessings shall come on thee, and
overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of
the Lord thy God.

3. Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed
shalt thou be in the f eld.

4. Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit
of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase
of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.

5. Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.

6. Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and
blessed shalt thou be wheii thoii goest out.

7 . The Lord shall cause thine enemies that rise up
against thee to be smitten before thy face : they shall
come out against thee one way, and flee before thee
seven ways.

8. The Lord shall command the blessing upon thee
in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine
hand unto ; and he shall bless thee in the land which
the Lord thy God giveth thee.

DEUTERONOMY XXVIII. 1—14. 271

In the scripture now brought before us, we
once more find Moses making the largest pro-
mises to the Israelites, upon their continued obe-
dience. Omitting, as for wise and important
reasons the great law-giver was no doubt in-
spired to do, all reference to a future state of
rewards and punishments, it was evidently need-
ful to supply its place, by the most unbounded
declaration of blessings upon earth. This pro-
bably is the reason, that there is such a constant
repetition of these short-lived though valuable
promises, not merely addressed to the Israelites
as a nation, but to each as an individual. " Blessed
shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy
ground, and the fruit of thy cattle." And to
those whose views of a future existence were
greatly clouded, these promises of temporal bless-
ings must have been peculiarly prevailing and
influential. Still there were higher thino-s than
these, that even in this less perfect dispensation
were permitted to form a part of the good man's
hopes and expectations. Let us look for them
in the concluding portion of the blessing, in
which, although much that is merely temporal
is repeated, something also that is spiritual is
intermingled.

9, The Lord shall establish thee an holy people
unto himself y as he hath sivorn unto thee, if thou shall

272 DEUTERONOMY XXVIII. 1—14.

keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, and walk
in his ways.

10. And all people of the earth shall see that thou
art called by the name of the Lord; and they shall be
afraid of thee.

11. And the Lord shall make thee plenteous in goods,
in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle,
and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the
Lord sware unto thy fathers to give thee.

12. The Lord shall open unto thee his good treasure,
the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season,
and to bless all the work of thine hand : and thou
shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shall not
borrow.

13. And the Lord shall make thee the head, and not
the tail ; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt
not be beneath ; if that thou hearken unto the com-
mandments of the Lord thy God, which I command
thee this day, to observe and to do them :

14. And thou shalt not go aside from any of the
words which I commayid thee this day, to the right
hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve
them.

In the midst of all these temporal promises,
then, we have this deeply-important spiritual
blessing, " The Lord shall establish thee an holy
people unto himself," as among the highest and
richest gifts from the treasury of heaven. If
they would but follow on to know the Lord, and
to obey his commandments, he would make them

DEUTERONOMY XXVIII. 1—14. 273

" an holy people unto liiiuself," and even more,
" would establish " them as such. What a pro-
mise, what a boon was this ! how far beyond all
that preceded and all that followed it ! Yes ! in
every dispensation, this is the Almighty's choicest
blessing-, " holiness unto himself." Whatever
else is granted, or whatever else withheld, this is
never absent from the catalogue of God's pro-
mised mercies. How strongly was this truth
attested amidst the thunders of Mount Sinai !
" Now, therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed,
and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a pecu-
liar treasure unto me above all people, and ye
shall be unto me a kingdom of priests and aa
holy nation." How sweetly was it again re-
peated in the still small voice of the Gospel of
God's love ! " Ye are a chosen generation, a royal
priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people ;"
and again, " The Lord make you to increase
and abound in love one toward another and
toward all men, to the end he may establish
your hearts unblamable in holiness before God,
even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ with all his saints." Holiness in both
dispensations, therefore, holiness is made the re-
ward of holiness ; and establishment in holiness,
the promised blessing to all who seek it. May
our heavenly Father bestow them both upon us,.

N 5

274 DEUTER0X0:MY XXVIII. 15— G8.

as a family and as individuals, for his dear Son's
sake, that *' being made free from sin, and
become servants to God, we may have our fruit
unto holiness, and the end everlasting life." *

EXPOSITION LXIII.

Deuteronomy xxviii. 15 — 68.

15. jBm^ it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not
hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe
to do all his commandments and his statutes which I
command thee this day ; that all these curses shall
come upon thee, and overtake thee :

16. Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed
shall thou be in the field.

17. Cursed shall be thy basket and thy store.

18. Cursed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the
fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kine, and the
flocks of thy sheep.

19 > Cursed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and
cursed shalt thou be when thou goest out.

20. The Lord shall send upon thee cursing, vexation,
and rebuke, in all that thou settest thine hand unto
for to do, until thou be destroyed, and until thouperish
quickly ; because of the wickedness of thy doings,
whereby thou hast forsaken me.

* Rom. vi. 22.

DEUTERONOMY XXVIII. 15—68. 275

We have lately reviewed all tlie promises and
blessings awaiting the Israelites upon a course of
obedience; we have here the threatening and
curses which were most assuredly to follow dis-
obedience and rebellion. There is something
perfectly appalling in the enumeration of these
maledictions ; nothing could escape them ; all
places, all occupations, all things, as it were,
swarmed with them. Did the rebellious Israelite
look to his " basket and his store," to what he
had already acquired of earthly goods, for con-
tentment and satisfaction ? The curse of the Al-
mighty God was upon them ; his " riches were
corrupted," his " garments moth-eaten," his gold
and silver cankered, and the rust of them was
" a witness against him " that he had forsaken
God. Did he seek to replenish his wasted
wealth by his labours in the field ? Alas ! to him
the field could yield no fruit, for God's curse was
in the field. Did he hasten back to bury himself
in the multitudes of the city beyond the reach of
the Almighty's avenging arm 1 The curse had
alighted there before him, and met him only
^Yith disappointment and disgrace. Did he re-
solve to seek his happiness in the bosom of his
family, in the shelter of his home? Vain was it
even there, for the man who mus at war with
God, to look for peace; the " fruit of his body"
7

276 DEUTERONOMY XXVIII. 15— G8.

had already felt the curse, and as all creatures,
even the highest, the dearest, and the best, can
be to us but what God makes them, all became
to the disobedient Israelite, from the infant in
the cradle to the wife of his bosom, but so many
vehicles for the curse of an offended God. So
truly wretched was the lot of those who wilfully
forsook, or carelessly neglected the God of all
their mercies. Nor have we yet arrived at the
close of this sad catalogue.

21. The Lord shall make the pestilence cleave unto
thee, until he have consumed thee from off" the land,
whither thou goest to possess it.

22. The Lord shall smite thee with a consumption,
and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with
an extreme burning, and with the sword, and ivith
blasting, and with mildew ; and they shall pursue
thee until thou -perish.

23. And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be
brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.

24. The Lord shall viake the rain of thy land
powder and dust : from heaven shall it come down upon
thee, until thou be destroyed.

64. And the Lord shall scatter thee among all people,
from the one end of the earth even unto the other ;
and there thou shall serve other gods, which neither
thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone.

65, And among these nations shall thou find no ease,
neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the

DEUTERONOMY XXVIII. 15—68. 277

Lord shall give thee there a trembling heart, and fail-
ing of eyes, and sorrow of mind :

QQ. And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee;
and thou shalt fear day and night, and shall have none
assurance of thy life :

67. In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it
were even ! and at even thou shalt say. Would God
it were morning ! for the fear of thine heart where-
with thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thine eyes
lohich thou shalt see.

68. And the Lord shall bring thee into Egypt again
icith ships, by the tvay whereof I spake unto thee,
Thou shalt see it no more again : and there ye shall be
sold unto your enemies for bondmen and bo7idwomen,
and no man shall buy you.

This completes the woeful catalogue of their
calamities, that after suffering every variety of
evil, and of misery, in their own land, the dis-
obedient Israelites, rejecting their own mercies,
should be sold into a land that w as not theirs,
and scattered throughout the nations of the earth.
How truly and how literally this curse has been
poured forth, let all history record, and all ob-
servation verify. There is no nation in Chris-
tendom where the scattered Israelites are not
found, and yet there is not one, with which they
are intermingled. Alone in the thickest mul-
titude, the outcast Jew is ever to be distinguished,
his peculiar physiognomy severing him from all

278 DEUTERONOMY XXIX. 1—29.

around ; and, although by the providence of God,
his " leaf does not wither," yet, by the same
providence, his stem does not take root ; no soil
is friendly to it, no climate genial; he lies, as it
were, upon the surface, the sport of every wind
that blows : and possessing oftentimes the wealth
of kings, can call no soil his own but the little
spot of ground which serves him for a sepulchre.

" The wild bird hath her nest, the fox his cave.
Mankind their country, Israel but the grave."

EXPOSITION LXIV.

Deuteronomy xxix. 1 — 29.

1. These are the words of the covenant, which the
Lord commanded Moses to make with the children of
Israel in the land of Moab, beside the covenant u/tich
he made with them in Horeb.

2. And Moses called unto all Israel, and said unto
them, Ye have seen all that the Lord did before your
eyes in the land of Egypt unto Pharaoh, and unto all
his servants, and unto all his land j

3. The great temptations which thine eyes have
seen, the signs, and those great miracles :

4. Yet the Lord hath not given you an heart to per-
ceive, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto this day.

DEUTERONOMY XXIX. 1—29. 279

5. And I have led you forty years in the ivilderness :
your clothes are not ivaxen old vpon you, and thy shoe
is not waxen old upon thy foot.

6. Ye have not eaten bread, neither have ye drunk
wine or strong drink: that ye might know that I am
the Lord your God-

7. And when ye came unto this place, Sihon the king
of Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, came out
against us unto battle, and lue smote them :

8. And we took their land, and gave it for an in-
heritance unto the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and
to the half tribe of Manasseh.

9. Keep therefore the words of this covenant, and
do them, that ye may prosper in all that ye do.

[^Here may he read from verse 10 to 21, in-
clusive.]

Moses had now completed both the blessings
and the curses attendant upon the obedience, or
disobedience of the children of Israel. Forty
years before, they bad stood at the foot of Mount
Horeb, and had entered into solemn covenant
with God to keep all these things, of which we
have been reading ; for we are told in the book
of Exodus (xix. 5, 8,) that when Moses came
and laid before the people " all these words
which the Lord commanded him, all the people
answered together, and said, " All that the Lord
hath spoken, we will do." But those forty years

280 DEUTERONOMY XXIX. 1—29.

had wrought vast chanoes in the conoreoation :

o ~ o o '

the men who had so stoutly sworn to the cove-
nant had broken it, and hud been cut off; their
children indeed remained, and were now occupy-
ing* their jjlaces, but, with the exception of their
leaders, perhaps none who heard this repetition
of the covenant, had been old enough to lake
any important share in the first delivery of it.
Therefore Moses reminds them, as he had forty
years before reminded tlieir fathers, of all the
great and good things which the Lord had done
for them; but he is still compelled to add, " Yet
the Lord hath not given you an heart to per-
ceive, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto
this day." Surrounded by the bounties of mercy
and love, they were blind to the hand which be-
stowed them. " The ox knoweth his owner, and
the ass his master's crib, but Israel doth not
know," or acknowledge the wonderful and mer-
ciful Being who vvas supernaturally supplying
all their bodily wants, even to the very shoes on
their feet, by a course of continual miracle. And
why was this ? How was such blindness, such
infatuation possible ? Simply, because it is God
alone who can give the seeing eye, the hearing-
ear, and the softened and grateful heart ; and
this they had never sought, therefore, as Moses
said, " God hath not given it to you unto this
day."

DEUTERONOMY XXIX. 1—29. 281

Amidst all our own many and great mercies,
may we daily seek at the hands of God, a still
higher and greater blessing, the heart to know,
to love, and to adore the Being from whom they
spring; when we are rich, to find God in ail ;
and when we are poor, to find all in God.

Moses having dwelt very strongly, in the in-
tervening verses, upon the certainty that the Lord
would not spare the disobedient, but that his
anger and " his jealousy would smoke against
that man," continues thus :

22. So that the generation to come of your children
that shall rise up after you, and the stranger that
shall come from a far land, shall say, when they see
the plagues of that land, and the sicknesses which the
Lord hath laid upon it ;

23. And that the whole land thereof is brimstone,
and salt, and burning, that it is not sown, nor beareth,
nor any grass groiceth therein, like the overthrow of
Sodom, and Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim, which the
Lord overthrew in his anger, and in his wrath ;

24. Even all nations shall say, Wherefore hath the
Lord done thus unto this land ? what meaneth the
heat of this great anger ?

25. Then men shall say. Because they have forsaken
the covenant of the Lord God of their fathers, which
he made with them when he brought them forth out of
the laiid of Egypt :

26. For they went and served other gods, and wor-

282 DEUTERONOMY XXIX. 1—29.

shipped them, gods ivhojn they hiew not, and whom
he had not given unto them:

27. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against
this land, to bring vpon it all the curses that are
written in this book :

28. And the Lord rooted them out of their land in
anger, and iti lurath, and in great indignation, and cast
them into another land, as it is this day.

29. The secret things belong unto the Lord our
God : but those things ivhich are revealed belong unto
us and to our children for ever, that we may do all
the words of this law.

This concluding- remark of Moses, is a most
striking and a deeply important and instructive
one. He seems, as it were, overcome with the
painful prospect which burst upon his prophetic
vision, when he saw this vast people, over whom
he had ruled for forty years, and fed, and clothed,
and guided by miracle, wandering in some far
distant age, as sheep without a shepherd, a flock
scattered upon the mountains. He feels the dif-
ficulty of reconciling such a result with such a
cost ; such a poor and degrading- conclusion,
with such an expensive and splendid road to lead
to it. But he checks the rising aspiration to
know more than God had seen fit to teach him
with the humble and beautiful observation, " The
secret things belong unto the Lord." They are

DEUTERONOMY XXIX. 1—29. 283

his property, at the disposal solely of his sove-
reign will, and no man may ask the potter why
he so mouldeth the clay ? or reason with his
Maker, " Why hast thou made me thus ?" Well
does Moses add, " But those things Mhich are
revealed, belong to us and to our children for
ever, that we may do all the words of this law.''
Blessed inheritance of God's children, in all ages !
His revealed word ! We want nothing better,
and nothing more. It is for us, and for our
children, aye for the youngest and feeblest of
them, for there is " milk for babes," as well as
meat for strong men. Blessed be God ^or all
that He has condescended to reveal to us now,
and blessed be his holy Name for all that He
has promised we shall " know hereafter." Let
us not attempt to reconcile those apparent con-
tradictions of which, by our own confession, we
can now see but so small a portion. As well
might we attempt to put together a disjointed
map, when some parts of it are wanting. Let us
wait patiently, and prayerfully, and faithfully,
for the time, when all will be made plain,
when " we shall see as we are seen, and know
even as we ourselves are known."

284 DEUTERONOMY XXX. 1— 20.

EXPOSITION LXV.
Deuteronomy xxx. I — 20.

1. And it shall come to pass, when all these thinys
are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which
I have set before thee, and thou shall call them to
mind among all the nations, whither the Lord thy God
hath driven thee,

2. And shalt return unto the Lord tJiy God, and
shalt obey his voice according to all that I command
thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine
heart, and with all thy soul;

3. That then the Lord thy God will turn thy cap-
tivily,and have compassion upon thee, and icill return
and gather thee from, all the nations, whither the Lord
thy God hath scattered thee.

4. If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost
parts of heaven, from thence will the Lord thy God
gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee :

5. And the Lord thy God will bring thee into the
land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess
it ; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above
thy fathers.

We have lately been reading the blessings and
the curses of Israel, but these were not all ; bitter
and overwhelming as the latter appeared, we

DEUTERONOMY XXX. 1—20. 285

find that our heavenly Father had yet one bless-
ing in store after the cup of his yengeance was
poured forth. We are here told expressly,
" Whe?i all these things are come upon thee, the
blessing; and the curse which I have set before
thee," then, even then, if they returned unto the
Lord their God, He would still once more return
unto them. How affecting is it to trace, in all
God's dealings with this people, his astonishing
forbearance and tender mercy ! It seemed im-
jiossible, at the close of the last chapter, that
there could be anything of mercy yet in reserve ;
all appeared concluded in the terrible maledic-
tion that they should be " rooted out of the land
in anger and in wrath and in great indignation;
the threatenings of God seemed thus, as it were,
to be wound up, and to leave " no room for re-
pentance, although they sought it earnestly and
with tears." But it was not so. Our heavenly
Father is always even better than his word. A
way was still open for the penitent and returning
Israelite ; the gate of mercy is never closed, so
long as there is one broken and contrite heart
desirous to seek it, and one trembling hand
willinof to knock. But let us examine still
further, what was required of those who were
anxious to be again received unto the favour of
their God.

286 DEUTERONOMY XXX. 1—20.

6. And the Lord thy God will circumcise thine
heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord thy
God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that
thou mayest live.

7. And the Lord thy God will put all these curses
upon thine enemies, and on them that hate thee, which
persecuted thee.

8. And thou shall return and obey the voice of the
Lord, and do all his commandments lohich I command
thee this day.

9. A7id the Lord thy God will viake thee plenteous
in every ivork of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body,
and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy
land, for cjood : for the Lord will again rejoice over
thee for good, as he rejoiced over thy fathers :

10. If thou shall hearken unto the voice of the Lord
thy God to keep his commandments and his statutes
which are written in this book of the law, and if thou
turn utito the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and
with all thy soul.

11. For this commandment vjhich I command thee
this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far

off-

12 It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say.
Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us,
that we may hear it, and do it ?

13. Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest
say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it
unto lis, that loe 7nay hear it, and do itP

14. But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth,
and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it.

15. See, I have set before thee this day life and
good, and death and evil;

DEUTERONOMY XXX. 1—20. 287

16. In that I comviand thee this day to love the
Lord thy God, to ivalk in his ways, and to keep his
commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that
thou mayest live and multiply : and the Lord thy God
shall bless thee in the land lu hit her thougoest to jjosscss
it.

17. JBut if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt
not hear, but shalt be dratvn away, and worship other
gods, and serve them ;

18. / denounce unto you this day, that ye shall
surely perish, and that ye shall not prolong your days
upon the land, ivhither thou passest over Jordan to go
to possess it.

19. / call heaven and earth to record this day against
you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing
and cursing : therefore choose life, that both thou and
thy seed may live:

20. That thou mayest love the Lord thy God, and
that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou viayest
cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the length of
thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which
the Lord sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to
Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.

Life and death are here distinctly set before
the Israelites as matter of free and independent
choice. " I have set before thee life and death,"
good and evil, " blessing and cursing, therefore
choose life that both thou and thy seed may live."
And yet this absolute freedom of choice is ac-
companied by the plainest declaration, that all

28H DEUTERONOMY XXX. 1-20.

is of God. The Lord will circumcise tliine heart
to enable thee to love Him, and the Lord will
make thee plenteous in ever}' good work : and
the Lord will himself bless thee for all that He
has enabled thee to do. So truly did the prophet
say, " Lord, thou hast wrought all our works in
us. *

So plainly and clearly is all this pointed out
by Moses, that he scruples not to say, that the
meaning cannot be hidden from them, that it is
" neither in heaven above, nor in the sea be-
neath," but nigh unto, yea, even in the mouth
and in the heart of all who sincerely seek it.
And, blessed be God, so is it also with the hopes
and privileges of the Gospel, as they are offered
to every one among us. The Apostle to the
Romans, when speaking of the " righteousness
which is of faith," hesitates not to quote these
very verses, to mark how plain, how clear, how
nigh, is this most blessed gift of God, to the
heart of all who seek it, through Christ Jesus.
He then adds these most gracious words, " If
thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord
Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God
hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be
saved." f Let not the most ignorant, or the most
humble, then, shrink from the apparent incon-
* Isa. xxvi. 12. t Rom. x. 10.

10

DEUTERONOMY XXXI. 1—13. 289

sistency, or the real diflnculty of the task. The
saving truths of the Gospel may, indeed, be some-
times hidden from the %vise and prudent, but
God has revealed them unto babes, and veill
reveal them, with all their healing power, and
saving elficacy, wherever there is one humble,
believing soul, which, feeling its own unworthiness
and impotency, is content to seek them in God's
appointed way, and to receive them as a gift,
through the one Divine and accepted Mediator.

EXPOSITION LXVI.
Deuteronomy xxxi. 1 — 13.

1. And Moses went and spake these words unto all
Israel.

2. And he said unto them, I am an hundred and
twenty years old this day ; I can no more go out arid
come in : also the Lord hath said unto me, Thou shalt
not go over this Jordan.

3. The Lord thy God he will go over before thee,
and he will destroy these nations from before thee,
and thou shalt possess them : and Joshua, he shall go
over before thee, as the Lord hath said.

4. And the Lord shall do unto them as he did to

o

290 DEUTERONOMY XXXI. 1—13.

Sihon and to Og, kincis of the Amorites, and unto the
land of them, whom he destroyed.

5. And the Lord shall give them np before your
face, that ye tnay do unto them according unto all the

commandments -which I have commanded you.

6. Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor
be afraid of them : for the Lord thy God, he it is that
doth go with thee : he will not fail thee, nor forsake
thee.

7. And Moses called unto Joshua, and said unto
him in the sight of all Lsrael, Be strong and of a good
courage : for thou must go tvith this people unto the
land which the Lord hath sworn unto their fathers
to give them ; and thou shalt cause them to inherit it.

8. And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee ;
he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither for-
sake thee : fear not, neither be dismayed.

What an affecting scene must not this have
been to the whole congregation of Israel ! The
aged Moses, having concluded the recital of all
the commandments, all the promises, all the
blessings, and curses, and future mercies of God,
distinctly declares to the people that the time of
his departure was at hand. He hints slightly
at his age, but he well knew that this was not
the cause of his removal, for " his natural force
was not abated." No, although an hundred and
twenty years old, he might have long continued
to have come in and gone out among them ; but

DEUTERONOMY XXXI. 1—13. 291

his Divine Master had, as the deserved punish-
ment of sin, willed it otherwise; " The Lord
hath said unto me, Thou shalt not go over this
Jordan." Moses does not attempt to conceal the
humiliating fact, but plainly and openly declares
it before the assembled multitudes. There can-
not be a better proof of our real, heartfelt hatred
of sin, and penitence for its committal, than our
ready recognition of the chastening by which it
is followed, and our willing acknowledgment that
our punishment is entirely deserved.

But Moses had yet another difficult task to
perform ; to present his successor, the faithful
Joshua, to the congregation of Israel. How
blessed are the promises by which he endeavours
to encourage and strengthen him. " The Lord,
He it is that doth go before thee, Pie will be
with thee, He will not fail thee, neither forsake
thee; fear not, neither be dismayed." Yet,
great as these promises are, they were in no
degree confined to Joshua, or even to the con-
gregation, committed to his charge. They ad-
dress themselves as pointedly to every individual,
who is willing to engage in the Lord's warfare,
to take up the cross and follow Christ. Yes,
even to the weakest, we may say. Thou shalt be
more than conqueror through Him that loved
thee. " Be not dismayed," " stronger is He that

o 2

292 DEUTERONOMY XXXI. 1 13.

is in you, than lie that is in the world." " He
will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." How won-
derful it is, that with such promises, there should
be such fears ; that with such assurances of
victory, there should be such disinclination to
persevere in the conflict ! This is indeed the
want of faith ; we do not see our Joshua with
the eye of sense, and we will not look for him
with the eye of faith, therefore we tremble, and
are needlessly dismayed. " Lord, that our eyes
may be opened," should be our daily prayer;
" Lord, increase our faith," our constant petition.

9. And Moses wrote this law, and delivered it unto
the priests the sons of Levi, which bare the ark of the
covenant of the Lord, and unto all the elders of Israel.

10. And Moses commanded them, saying. At the
end of every seven years, in the solemnity of the year
of release, in the feast of tabernacles,

11. When all Israel is come to appear before the
Lord thy God in the place which he shall choose, thou
shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing.

12. Gather the people together, men, and women,
and children, and thy stranger that is within thy gates,
that they may hear, and that they may learn, and fear
the Lord your God, and observe to do all the words of
this law :

13. And that their children, which have not known
anything, may hear, and learn to fear the Lord your
God, as long os ye live in the land whither ye go over
Jordan to possess it.

DEUTERONOMY XXXI. 1 — 13. 293

This marks the entire conclusion of that re-
petition of the law, with which the book of
Deuteronomy is occupied. It states distinctly,
" Moses wrote this law and delivered it unto the
priests," ordering, in addition to those weekly
readings of it in the synagogues, to which re-
ference is made in the Acts of the Apostles,*
when we are told, " Moses of old time was read
in the synagogue every sabbath day ;" one grand
national publication of the law, at the close of
every seven years, before all the people. It is
pleasing to find, how literally this was in after
days fulfilled, whenever there was a pious ruler
to undertake the solemn, and striking duty.
Thus we are told of Joshua, He read all the
words of the law, the blessings and cursings, ac-
cording to all that is written in the book of the
law. " There was not a word of all that Moses
commanded, which Joshua read not before all
the congregation of Israel, with the women and
the little ones, and the strangers that were con-
versant among them."-{- And so again of the
good king Josiah, that " He read in their ears
all the words of the book of the covenant that
was found in the house of the Lord." J Such
was the fatherly care, manifested by the Al-

* Acts XV. 21. t Joshua viii. 34, 35.

I 2 Chron. xxxiv. 40.

294 DEUTERONOMY XXXI. l—\3.

mighty, that all might be instructed in this im-
portant and essential duty. Even the youngest
child was not overlooked or forgotten, for it is
expressly commanded, that " their children which
have not known anything, may hear and learn
to fear the Lord their God." How much more
important, then, must it not be in the dispensa-
tion under which we live, that the Scriptures
should be kept back from none, that all should
be early and carefully trained in their blessed,
and life-giving doctrines, since " they are they
which testify of Christ." Of what avail is other
knowledge if this be withlield, or partially, and
darkly communicated? May God grant that a
growing perception, and a far more widely ex-
tended practice of this great duty, may be vouch-
safed to us, until not a family in our country, but
shall possess the word of life, and not a child but
shall be taught therefrom, to raise its little hands
in the name of Jesus, and to seek for his love
within its heart.

DEUTERONOMY XXXI. 14—30. 29 J

EXPOSITION LXVII.

Deuteronomy xxxi. 14 — 30.

14. And the Lord said unto Moses, Behold, thy days
approach that thou?nust die : call Joshua, and present
yourselves in the tabernacle of the congregation, that
I may give him a charge. And Moses and Joshua
went, and presented themselves in the tabernacle of the
congregation.

15. And the Lord appeared in the tabernacle in a
pillar of a cloud: and the pillar of the cloud stood
over the door of the tabernacle.

16. And the Lord said tinfo Moses, Behold, thou
shall sleep with thy fathers ; and this people ivill
rise up, and no a ivhoring after the gods of the stran-
gers of the land, whither they go to be among thetn,
and will forsake me, and break my covenant which I
have made with them.

17. Tlien my anger shall be kindled against tJton
in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide
my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and
many evils and troiibles shall befal thetn; ao that they
will say in that day, Are not these evils come upon us,
because our God is not among us ?

18. And I will surely hide my face in that day for
all the evils ivhich they shall have wrought, in that
they are turned unto other gods.

296 DEUTERONOMY XXXI. 14—30.

19. Now therefore write ye this song ^or you, and
teach it the children of Israel: put it in their mouths,
that this song may be a witness for me against the
children of Israel.

20. For when I shall have brought them into the
land which I sware unto their fathers, that floweth
with milk and honey ; and they shall have eaten and

filled themselves, and waxen fat ; then will they turn
unto other gods, and serve them, and provoke me, and
break my covenant.

21. And it shall come to pass, when many evils and
troubles are befallen them, that this song shall testify
against them as a witness ; for it shall not be for-
gotten out of the mouths of their seed : for I know
their imagination which they go about, even now, be-
fore I have brought them into the land which I sware.

Thus, at the very moment that the Almighty
again reminded Moses, that the time of his de-
parture was at hand, " Behold, thy days ap-
proach that thou must die," did He also predict
the fearful apostasy of the people ; " I know
their imagination which they go about, even now
before I have brought them into the land which I
sware." The Lord then commands his servant
to write a song, in which all the wondrous deal-
ing of God with the Israelites, and all their un-
grateful and treacherous dealings with God,
should be faithfully rehearsed. This song was
to be taught to the people, that it might form a

DEUTERONOMY XXXI. 14—30. 297

perpetual memorial of these remarkable events,
and thus, if it were possible, restrain them from
their rebellious departures from the God of all
their mercies. How insufficient it was for this
great purpose, the future history of the Israelites
will, alas ! too plainly record ; it remains, there-
fore, only as a standing memorial of God's good-
ness and their ingratitude, and must for ever
plead most loudly, and most forcibly against
them.

Thus is it also with every record of the Al-
mighty's mercies to ourselves, with every instruc-
tion we receive, even, with every chapter of the
Divine Word that we hear, if they are without
producing a corresponding effect upon our hearts
and lives. There is nothing nugatory in God's
dealings with us; all, even the most minute, is
for good or ill, as the simple preaching of the
Gospel is itself " a savour of life unto life, or
of death unto death," to all who listen to it. But
we shall see this more strongly illustrated as we
advance.

22. Moses therefore wrote this song the same day,
and taught it the children of Israel.

23, And he gave Joshua the son of Nun a charge,
and said, Be strong and of a good courage ; for thou
shalt bring the children of Israel into the land which
I sware unto them : and I will be with thee.

o 5

298 DEUTERONOMY XXXI. 14—30.

24. And it came to pass, when Moses had made an
end of writing the words of this law in a book, until
they were finished,

23. That JMoses commanded the Levitcs which bare
the ark of the covenant of the Lord, saying,

26. Take tliis book of the Laic, and put it in the side
of the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, that
it may be there for a witness against thee.

27. For I know thy rebellion and thy stiff neck :
behold, while I am yet alive with you this day, ye have
been rebellious against the Lord ; and how much more
after my death ?

28. Gather unto me all the elders of your tribes,
and your officers, that I may speak these words in
their ears, and call heaven and earth to record against
them.

29. For I know that after my death ye will utterly
corrupt yourselves, and turn aside from the way which
I have commanded you ; and evil will befal you in
the latter days ; because ye will do evil in the sight of
the Lord, to provoke him to anger through the work
of your hands.

30. And Moses spake in the ears of all the congre-
gation of Israel the words of this song, until they were
ended.

How sad an evidence have we, in these pro-
jahetic declarations, of one of the chief purposes
for which all the solemn instructions of Moses
should serve. He says, of the book which he
had written, " Put it in the side of the ark of

DEUTERONOMY XXXI. 14—30. 299

the covenant of the Lord your God, that it may
be there for a witness against thee." How
careful should we be, as a family, how earnestly
should we pray as individuals, that our know-
ledge of God's word should never be treasured
up as a witness against us ! Yet this it most
assuredly -will, in every single case, in which this
knowledge is not accompanied by a sincere and
heartfelt practice of it. Indeed this is one of the
dangers consequent upon all increase of religious
knowledge and relio;ious instruction. " To whom
much is given from him shall much be required."
Have you been permitted to enjoy the benefits
of education ? can you read the word of God
for yourself? have you the privilege of hearing
it read in the family ? All these blessings w ill
witness against you, if you " turn aside from the
way which God has commanded you," if you
" despise him that speaketh from heaven," if
you neglect the Saviour, " of whom Moses and
prophets did write." But then, blessed be God,
all these things shall, as our Church expresses
it, " turn to your profit, and help you forward
in the right way which leads to everlasting life,"
if the instructions which they communicate be
received with gratitude, and watered with prayer,
and practised assiduously, and retained carefullv.

300 DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 1—8.

and made constantly subservient to the one great
end of glorifying your Father which is in heaven,
and of performing his will.

EXPOSITION LXVIII.

Deuteronomy xxxii. 1 — 8.

1. Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and
hear, 0 earth, the words of my mouth.

2. My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech
shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender
herb, and as the showers upon the grass :

3. Because I will publish the name of the Lord :
ascribe ye greatness unto our God.

4. He is the Rock, his work is perfect : for all his
ways are judgment : a God of truth and without
inicjuity,just and right is he.

5. They have corrupted themselves, their spot is not
the spot of his children : they are a perverse and
crooked generation.

6. Do ye thus requite the Lord, 0 foolish people
and unwise? is not he thy father that hath bought
thee ? hath he not made thee, and established thee ?

7. Remember the days of old, consider the years of
many generations : ask thy father, and he will shew
thee ; thy elders, and they %vill tell thee.

8. When the Most High divided to the nations their

DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 1—8. 301

i7iheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he
set the bounds of the people according to the number of
the children of Israel.

Such is the commencement of that inspired
song which was composed by Moses at the com-
mand of the Ahuighty, and, as might have been
expected, very full is it of the most valuable
doctrines, and the most important advice. What,
for instance, can be more striking than the de-
scription of Jehovah in the fourth verse? " He
is the Rock, his work is perfect ; for all his ways
are judgment : a God of truth, and without
iniquity, just and right is He." How different
is this, from any, and every, of the uninspired
notions of Deity, which have descended to us
from the writers of antiquity ! Where is the
divinity from among all the ten thousand gods
of heathen worship, of whom it could be said,
" A God of truth, and without iniquity, just and
right is he?" Again, how comforting to the
Bible Christian to know that his God is " the
Rock," and that " his work is perfect !" Such a
rock is He, that all the weight of all the cares,
and sorrows, and difficulties, and trials of life,
may, in every individual case, be laid upon Him
in perfect security, that He will bear all, support
all, and strengthen us to bear and support more
than all, that the weariest lot on earth can cast

302 DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 1—8.

upon us. Wliile in so trusting- to our Rock, and
so, in simple dependence, laying- our utter weak-
ness upon his infinite strength, we are doing no
more than He expects, no more than He pro-
mises, nay, no more than He commands ; for is
it not written, " Cast all your care upon Him,
for He careth for you ?" And with the revelation
of Jehovah's infinite strength, comes also the
knowledge of his infinite perfection, " His work
is perfect." All that He has done, and shall do
for us, is perfection itself. We have a perfect
God to serve, a perfect Saviour to rely upon,
a perfect Spirit, whose aid is promised in time
of need. Yet further, we have a perfect re-
demption wrought out for us, a perfect salvation
purchased for us, a heaven of perfect happiness
secured to us. Surely we ought not to be con-
tent with an imperfect faith, an imperfect hope,
an imperfect holiness. May our every prayer
and effort be towards the fulfilment of our Lord's
own most blessed command, " Be ye perfect,
even as your Father which is in heaven is
perfect."

DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 9—18. 303

EXPOSITION LXIX.

Deuteronomy xxxii. 9 — 18.

9. For the Lord's ■portion is his people ; Jacob is
the lot of his inheritance.

10. He found him in a desert land, and in the ivaste
howling wilderness: he led him about, he instructed
him, he kept him as the apple of his eye.

11. As an eagle stirreth uj) her nest, Jluttereth over
her young, spreadeth abroad Iter wings, taketh them,
beareth them on her wings :

12. So the Lord alone did lead him, and there was
no strange god with him.

13. He made him ride on the high places of the
earth, that he might eat the increase of the fields ; and
he made him to suck honey out of the rock, and oil out
of the finty rock;

14. Butter of hine, and milk of sheep, with fat of
lambs, and rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats,
with the fat of kidneys of wheat ; and thou didst
drink the pure blood of the grape.

15. But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked : thou art
waxen fat, thou art grown thick, thou art covered toith
fatness; then he forsook God which made him, and

lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation.

16. They provoked him to jealousy with strange
gods, with abominations provoked they him to anger.

304 DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 9—18.

17. They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods
whom theij knew not, to new gods that came newly up,
whom your fathers feared not.

18. Of the Rock that begat thee thou art unmind-
ful, and hast forgotten God that formed thee.

How beautifully does this inspired song con-
tinue ! After having assured us that God is " the
Rock" of his people, it now goes on to tell us
that his people are " the portion of their God !"
What an affecting thought is this ! That such
poor, imperfect, sinful vessels of clay should ever
be used for God's purposes, or obtain his mo-
mentary regard, is wonderful, when we look
from man to God ; but that the great Jehovah
should condescend to claim his people as " his
portion, his inheritance," surpasses wonder. Yet
is it true, literally, unquestionably true, as true
at this hour, of all the believing people of the
Lord Jesus, whom He has purchased with his
blood, as it was of Israel on the day when the
song was written. For has not the written word
declared of all in every age who fear the Lord
and think upon his name, " They shall be mine,
saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make
up my jewels ?" or yet more literally, when I
make up " my special treasure." Blessed be
God, his people, then, are still " his portion,"
" his inheritance," and he will yet show them all

DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 9—18. 305

the mercy, the tenderness, and the love, which
He manifested to Israel of old. He still finds
them " in the desert land," He still leads them,
or rather " compasseth" them about, and keeps
them " as the apple of his eye." While, if there
be any change in the declaration of guardianship,
and of guidance, which is here promised to the
Israelite, it is only to increase it tenfold in mercy
and in tenderness, when renewing it to the
Christian. It is no longer to the " eagle stirring
up her nest," and " fluttering over her young,"
that our merciful Saviour is content to compare
himself; no. He finds a homelier, and yet a
tenderer similitude. The wild, fierce bird of prey,
is exchanged for the gentle and domestic hen ; the
" fluttering over her young " in all the " pride of
place," is exchanged for the affectionate and mo-
therly gathering beneath her wings in the hour
of danger ; and every heart sympathises at once
with the love and compassion of Him who
speaks, when He says, " How often would I
have gathered thy children together even as a hen
gathereth her chickens under her wings !" May
our heavenly Father, who has condescended to
call us within his fold, grant that all who have
obeyed the call, may be daily growing up to the
stature of the fulness of Christ, and be thus kept
by the power of God through faith unto salvation.

306 DEUTERONOMY XXXII. ID— 43.

EXPOSITION LXX.

Deuteronomy xxxii. 19 — 43.

19. And when the Lord saw it, he abhorred them,
because of the provoking of his sons, and of his
daughters.

20. And he said, I ivill hide my face from them, I
will see what their end shall be ; for they are a very

froward generation, children in whom is no faith.

21. They have moved me to jealousy with that which
is not God: they have provoked me to anger with
their vanities : and I will move them to jealousy with
those which are 7iot a people : I will provoke them to
anger with a foolish nation.

22. For a fire is kindled in mine anger, and shall
burn unto the lowest hell, and shall consume the earth
with her iitcrease, and set on fire the foundations of
the mountains.

23. / will heap mischiefs vpon them ; I will spend
mine arrows uj^on them.

24. They shall be burnt with hunger, and devoured
with burning heat, and with bitter destruction : I
will also send the teeth of beasts upon them, with the
poison of serpents of the dust.

25. The sword without, and terror within, shall de-
stroy both the young man and the virgin, the suckling
also with the man of gray hairs.

DEUTERONOMY XXXIL 19—43. 307

26. I said, I loould scatter them into corners, I icon Id
make the remembrance of them to cease from among
men :

27. Were it not that I feared the wrath of the
ene?ni/, lest their adversaries should behave thcmtelves
stranyely, and lest they should say, Our hand is high,
and the Lord hath rwt done all this.

28. For they are a nation void of counsel, neither is
there any understanding in them.

Observe, Iiow tliis remarkable song- of Moses
darkens as it j)roceeds. It begins by recounting
the greatness and goodness of God, and proceeds
by contrasting the rebellions of Israel with their
mercies. But now, it seems as though the anger
of the Lord kindled as he advanced, and He
speaks of actually" abhorring" the very people
for whom He had done so much. There is a
point, then, beyond v»'hicli the forbearing mercy
of our God will not extend ; He may crown us
with the blessings of Avorldly prosperity. He
may make our cup of earthly joys to run over,
and yet, if his hand be not recognised, and his
voice obeyed in the midst of these mercies, the
Almighty may say of every individual among us
as He here says of careless and rebellious Israel,
" I will hide my face from them, I v.ill see what
their end shall be." Alas ! it is not difficult to
see what our end shall be, if the face of the Lord

308 DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 19—43.

be withdrawn from us. Did you ever liear of
a deatlibed, void of hope, void of peace, void of
comfort ? The ministers of God have witnessed
many such scenes. These are the effects of the
hidings of God's face from those in their last
extremity, who have neglected, wilfully neg-
lected, to seek Him in the Son of his love, during
the days of health and prosperity. Such the
end of every one may be, who is at this moment
neglecting God. Such our end shall be, if we
continue to disregard the offers of his mercy, as
declared to us in Christ Jesus, until the bride-
groom be entered in, and the door has been shut.

29. 0 that they were wise, that they understand this,
that they would consider their latter end .'

30. How should one chase a thousand, and two put
ten thousand to flight, except their Rock had sold them,
and the Lord had shut them up ?

31. For their rock is not as our Rock, even our ene-
mies themselves being judges.

32. For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of
the fields of Gomorrah : their grapes are grapes of
gall, their clusters are bitter :

33. Their wine is the poison of dragons, and the
cruel venom of asps.

34. Is not this laid up in store with me, and sealed
up among my treasures ?

35. To me belongeth vengeance and recompense ;
their foot shall slide in due time : for the day of their

DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 19—43. 309

calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come
upon them make haste.

36. For the Lord shall judge his people, and repent
himself for his servants, when he seeth that their
power is gone, and there is none shut up, or left.

37. And he shall say. Where are their gods, their
rock in whom they trusted.

38. Which did eat the fat of their sacrifices, and
drank the wine of their drink offerings ? let them rise
up and help you, and be your protection.

39. See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no
god with me : I kill, and I make alive ; I wound, and
I heal : neither is there any that can deliver out of
yny hand.

40. For I lift up my hand to heaven, and say, I live
for ever.

41. If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand
take hold on judgment : I will render vengeance to mine
enemies, and will reward them that hate me.

42. I will make mine arrows drunk with blood, and
my sword shall devour fesh ; and that with the blood
of the slain and of the captives, from the beginning of
revenges upon the enemy.

43. Rejoice, 0 ye nations, with his people : for he
will avenge the blood of his servants, and will render
vengeance to his adversaries, and will be merciful unto
his land, and to his people.

How encouragingly does this portion of the
inspired song of Moses both commence and
conclude ! He had been describing what effect
the hidings of God's face would have upon the

310 DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 19— J3.

latter end of liis people ; and here the Almighty,
unable, as it were, any longer to restrain his
mercy, breaks forth, " 0 that they were wise,
that they would understand this, that they would
consider their latter end !" Then follows one of
the most poetical and beautiful descriptions of
the Almighty's majesty and power to be met
with in holy Writ ; while all concludes, far dif-
ferently, indeed, from what we should have an-
ticipated, not with the outpouring of vengeance,
but with a solemn appeal to the " nations," i. e.
the Gentiles, to come and rejoice in God's re-
turning mercy to his people. We know nothing
so well calculated to speak peace to the heart
of the doubting penitent, as these wonderful
developements of God's pardoning love to his
backsliding people. Let the language of con-
demnation be ever so strong, it is certain to be
followed by offers of acceptance and forgiveness
to all who are willing to return by the leadings
of his grace. May none, then, be driven to
despair ; may all receive power from on high,
invariably granted to those who seek it, to return
to the paths which they have forsaken. But
oh ! wait not for this to be bestowed, without
your seeking it ; it is indeed a free gift, for it
is purchased for you, by and in Christ Jesus, who
has now ascended up on high, that He might

5

DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 44—48. 311

give " gifts to men ;" but it is absolutely necessary
that it should be sought for with faithful and
diligent prayer. Not a blessing that the Al-
mighty intends to bestow, of which He says not,
" For all this I Avill be inquired of by them."
All God's gifts are free, and yet all are like the
fruits of the tree which is for the healing of the
nations, hanging in rich clusters above our
heads, but waiting for the hand of faith to pluck
them. AVhile among his choicest and his best
gifts is most assuredly that Ploly Spirit, who
alone can guide the wanderer back into the paths
of peace, and who is equally within the reach of
all who seek Him.

EXPOSITION LXX.

Deuteronomy xxxii. 44 — 48.

44. And Moses came and spake all the words of
this song in the ears of the people, he, and Hoshea the
son of Nun.

45. And Moses inade an end of speaking all these
words to all Israel :

46. And he said unto them, Set your hearts unto all
the words tvhich I testify among you this day, which
ye shall command your children to observe to do, all
the words of this law.

312 DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 44-48.

Such is the manner in wbieli Moses, accom-
panied by Joshua to whom he was about to
bequeath his kingly power, endeavoured to en-
force on the children of Israel, the important
truths we have lately considered. It was not
enough that they had listened to this importarrt
document with attention and respect, far more
than this was required of them. Moses expressly
says to them, " Set your hearts unto all the words
which I testify among you this day." That was
what was wanting to make these words in any
degree good or profitable to them ; the heart
was to be engaged, deeply, solemnly engaged,
or all else was of no avail. Let us bear this in
mind, when listening to the doctrines and pre-
cepts of God's holy word. The same direction
still maintains its truth and force, for " with
the heart man believeth unto righteousness."
When we leave God's house of prayer, when we
close the book of life, when we depart from
family, or social, or private worship, let us ask
ourselves, Have I set my heart unto all the
words which I have heard this day ? Without
this, it has been an opportunity wasted, a privi-
lege thrown away, a duty unfulfilled. There
are many occupations in which we may be en-
gaged, in which the heart is not required ; a
slight degree of attention, perhaps, is all that

6

DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 44—46. 313

they demand, and this is easily and cheerfully
rendered. It is not so with religious ordinances,
or holy duties ; just in proportion as the heart
is there, we are there; if that be absent, we are
absent, and better far would it have been for us,
had we offered no bodily attendance, no lip
worship, than the miserable, heartless service,
with which we too often content ourselves.

Observe carefully the reason that Moses gives
for thus earnestly entreating the Israelites to
set their hearts unto the words which he had
been speaking to them ; he says plainly and
distinctly, " For it is not a vain thing for you ;
because it is your life." What a solemn reason
is this, " It is your life !" It is actually a matter
of life and death, whether they would hear, or
whether they would forbear. So is it also with
ourselves. It is our life ; whatever we may
be disposed to think of it now, the day will
assuredly come to all and each of us, when we
shall both know and feel, that this is " not a
vain thing." It may so appear at this present
moment, as it did to those of old, who scoffingly
inquired," What profit is there in serving God ?"
but in the hour of death, and in the day of judg-
ment, every soul will confess that these things
are not vain, that nothing but this deserves the
name of life. Riches are not life, health is not

p

314 DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 47—52.

life, pleasure is not life. Nothing but a heart
united to the Saviour, renewed by the SjDirit of
grace, and fully devoted to God's service, de-
serves the name of life — life temporal, life spi-
ritual, life eternal.

EXPOSITION LXXI.

Deuteronomy xxxii. 47 — 52.

47. For it is not a vain thing for you : because it is
your life : and through this thing ye shall prolong your
days in the land, whither ye go over Jordan to pos-
sess it.

48. And the Lord spake unto Moses that selfsame
day, saying,

49. Get thee vp into this mountain Abarim, unto
mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is over
against Jericho ; and behold the land of Canaan,
which I give unto the children of Israel for a pos-
session.

50. And die in the mount whither thou goest up,
and be gathered unto thy people ; as Aaron thy brother
died in mount Hor, and was gathered unto his people :

51. Because ye trespassed against me among the
children of Israel at the ivaters of Meribah-Kadesh
in the wilderness of Zin ; because ye sanctified me not
in the midst of the children of Israel.

DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 47—52. 315

52. Yet thou shalt see the land before thee ; but thou
shalt not go thither unto the land which I give the chil-
dren of Israel.

How calamitous a conclusion to a chapter so
full of honour to Moses ! He is made the blessed
instrument of leading, warning, instructing
others, and yet he himself is called upon to pay
the forfeit of his life to God's broken law !
" Because ye trespassed against wie," is the ap-
palling reason which the Almighty gives for
closing the gates of the earthly Canaan for ever
against his faithful servant. Alas ! what would
be our lot, if God were thus " extreme to mark
what is done amiss," by any among ourselves !
And yet with God " there is no variableness,
neither shadow of turning;" whence comes it,
then, that we are not consumed? Surely it is,
because there is " One who ever liveth to make
intercession for us," who pleads even for the
most barren tree in his vineyard ; " Let it alone
this year also, that I may dig about it, and dung
it, and if it bear fruit well, but if not, then after
that thou shalt cut it down."

But remark here, how the Lord in justice
remembers mercy. Moses had earnestly en-
treated the Almighty, that he might be permitted
to pass over into Canaan, and we have seen* that
* Numbers xxvii. 12, 13.

p 2

316 DEUTERONOMY XXXII. 47—52.

he was refused ; but he had been promised a
sight of that good land, which he had been for-
bidden to enter ; and now the Lord remembers,
and repeats unasked, his promise. So certain is
it, that no good thing shall fail of all that the
Lord our God has spoken to us of. Let us,
then, repose our souls in peace upon those blessed
promises, which are " all yea and amen in Christ
Jesus." When tempted to question them, let us
" resist the tempter in the power of God's good
Spirit," and he will flee from us ; let us calm our
souls by the recollection that " He is faithful
who has promised ;" and let us remember that
involved in those promises is the blessed decla-
ration, " In all these things we are more than
conquerors through Him that loved us. For I
am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor
angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things
present, nor things to come, nor height, nor
depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to
separate us from the love of God, which is in
Christ Jesus our Lord."

DEUTERONOMY XXXTII. 1—11. 317

EXPOSITION LXXIII.

Deuteronomy xxxiii. 1 — 11.

1. And this is the blessing, wherewith Moses the
man of God blessed the children of Israel before his
death.

2. And he said, The Lord came from Sinai and rose
up from Seir unto them; he shined forth from mount
Paran, and he came with fen thousands of saints;
from his right hand went a fiery law for them.

3. Yea, he loved the people ; all his saints are in
thy hand: and they sat down at thy feet ; every one
shall receive of thy words.

4. Moses commanded us a law, even the inheritayice
of the congregation of Jacob.

5. And he was king in Jeshurun, when the heads
of the people and the tribes of Israel were gathered
together.

The last chapter contained the inspired song
of Moses, this records, for the instruction of the
Church, his dying blessing. It was, as we have
seen, on previous occasions, the custom of the
patriarchs to call their family around their dying
bed, and there to bequeath to them a final bless-
ing, which was evidently inspired by the Al-
mighty, since it appears invariably to have been

318 DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 1— II.

fulfilled. On the present occasion, Moses seems
to have considered the children of Israel as his
own family, and to have been led, by the Spirit
of God, to predict their future greatness, and to
pour forth upon them these last and remarkable
benedictions. He thus commences :

6. Let Reuben live, and not die ; and let not his men
be few.

7. And this is the blessing of Judah : and he said,
Hear, Lord, the voice of Judah, and bring him unto his
people : let his hands be sufficient for him ; and be
thou an help to him from his enemies.

8 And of Levi he said. Let thy Thummim and thy
Urim be with thy holy one, whom thou didst prove at
Massah^ and with whom thou didst strive at the waters
of Meribah.

9. Who said unto his father and to his mother, I
have not seen him ; neither did he acknowledge his
brethren, nor knew his own children : for they have
observed thy word, and kept thy covenant.

10. They shall teach Jacob thy judgments, and
Israel thy law : they shall put incense before thee, and
whole burnt sacrifice upon thine altar.

11. Bless, Lord, his substance, and accept the work
of his hands : smite through the loins of them that rise
against him, and of them that hate him, that they rise
not again.

We have here the three first blessings pro-
nounced by Moses, and embracing the tribes of

DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 1—11. 319

Reuben, of Judah, and of Levi. Each has its
characteristic peculiarity. Reuben was, as we
have seen, to be a frontier tribe, and therefore
continually exposed to the attacks and inroads
of the enemy ; for him, therefore, Moses prayed,
that notwith>tanding this perilous position, he
might not be cut off, and, to insure this the better,
that his men might not be few, but that he might
always be enabled to present a bold and successful
front to his invading enemies.

For Judah, his petition is, that as he was after-
wards to lead the van into the promised land,
and fio-ht at the head of the tribes, he mig;ht be
brought in safety " unto his people," or unto his
appointed territory ; that his hands might be
sufficient for him, for all the great purposes for
which by this leading tribe they would be re-
quired. Some suppose that when Moses here
prays, that the Lord should hear the voice of
Judah, reference is made to the Messiah, who
should spring from his loins ; but this seems
scarcely probable ; for, although the Messiah is
sometimes, in holy writ, called David, we are
not aware that there is any instance in which He
is named Judah ; we should, therefore, rather
refer it to the blessing that should attend the
prayers of Judah, as a tribe whom the Lord de-
liohted to hear and to honour.

320 DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 1—11.

For the tribe of Levi the blessing is very pe-
culiar, " Let thy Thuminim and tliy Urim be
with thy holy one ;" the holy one here evidently
means the high priest by the words which follow,
and which rehearse the fact of Aaron's faithful-
ness at the first waters of Meribah, and the
iaithfulness of the whole tribe, when ordered to
be the executioners of the Almighty's judgment,
and to spare neither friend nor foe. The refer-
ence to this is very striking, and very remark-
able ; it declares that on that awful day of retri-
bution, for the idolatry of the golden calf, when
the tribe of Levi girt on their swords, and passed
through the camp from end to end, as the exe-
cutioners of God's judgment upon the idolators,
they recognised neither relative nor friend, nei-
ther brethren nor children, but slew alike, with-
out pity and without distinction, all who had
not taken refuge in their tents ; Moses, there-
fore, declares of Levi, " He did not acknowledge
his brethren, or know his own children, for they
observed thy word," in thus punishing the ene-
mies of their God.

Accordingly, Moses here prays that the office
of the high priest, designated by the Urim and
Thummim, might long remain in that tribe; that
they might continue to teach Jacob his judg-
ments, and Israel his law, and that the blessing

DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 1—11. 321

of God might largely rest upon his substance
and upon the works of his hands.

How abundantly, and for how long a series of
ages, this predicted blessing was vouchsafed, the
history of the Jews plainly records to us ; still,
the time came when the Urim and Thummim
were lost, and finally, when the Aaronica:! priest-
hood was superseded. For He, of whom far
greater things than these were spoken, " per-
tained to another tribe, of which no man gave
attendance at the altar." " For it is evident,"
continues the Apostle to the Hebrews, " that
our Lord sprang out of Judah, of which tribe,
Moses spake nothing concerning the priesthood."
" But this man, because he continueth ever,
hath an unchangeable priesthood." Blessed be
God for such a revelation ! for what is this doc-
trine which the apostle derives from it ? " Where-
fore He is able to save them to the uttermost,
that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever
liveth to make intercession for them." How
far does the dispensation under which we live
surpass all that preceded it ? Our blessings, our
privileges, our consolations, — how great, how un-
speakable ! But then, never let us forget that
so also are our responsibilities and our duties ;
that to whom much is given, from the same shall
much be required. " Seeing then that we have

p 5

322 DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 12—17.

a great High Priest, that is passed into the
heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast
our profession," thinking nothing too much to
endure, nothing too great to offer, to testify our
love, and our obedience unto Him, who was
content to be the sacrifice, as well as the Priest,
and to suffer and to die for us on earth, as well
as to intercede for us for ever in heaven.

EXPOSITION LXXIV.

Deuteronomy xxxiii. 12 — 17.

12, And of Benjamin he said. The beloved of the
Lord shall dwell in safety by him ; and the Lord shall
cover him all the day long, and he shall dwell between
his shoulders.

Such is the blessing of the tribe of Benjamin.
The benediction is a very short, but a very com-
prehensive one : " The beloved of the Lord shall
dwell in safety by him." It seems, then, as if
the parental love felt by Jacob for this favourite
son, was mercifully extended by the Almighty

DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 12—17. 323

to that son's descendants, and that, as St. Paul
says, of Israel in general, " They were beloved
for the fathers' sake." The promise also is a
very remarkable one ; " The Lord shall cover
him all the day long-, and he shall dwell between
his shoulders." This very singular expression,
of the Lord, " dwelling between the shoulders "
of Benjamin, has been referred to the fact of
Mount Moriah, upon a portion of which the
temple was afterwards built, standing in the
lot of Benjamin, as a man's head between his
shoulders, and that thus the Lord in a peculiar
manner covered him by the shadow of his
sanctuary, and dwelt between his shoulders.
Whether it was, indeed, intended to i3refigure
this, or simply to mark the nearness and ten-
derness of that Almighty Being for this small but
beloved tribe, from which the first king and
the chiefest apostle were selected, we cannot
tell. One thing is, however, certain, that the
nearness of our God, and his taking up his
abode with us, is one of the choicest of pro-
mised blessings, whether under the old or new
dispensation ; and that as the true children of
God, we ought never to feel satisfied unless we
possess a good hope through grace, " that," as
our sacramental service expresses it, " we may
evermore dwell in Him, and He in us."

324 DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 12—17.

13. And of Joseph he said, Blessed of the Lord be
his land, for the precious things of heaven, for the
dew, and for the deep that coucheth beneath,

14. And for the precious fruits brought forth by the
SU71, and for the precious things put forth by the moon,

15. And for the chief things of the ancient moun-
tains, and for the precious things of the lasting kills,

16. And for the precious things of the earth and
fulness thereof, and for the good ivill of him that divelt
in the bush : let the blessing come upon the head of
Joseph, and upon the top of the head of him that was
separated from his brethren.

17. His glory is like the firstling of his bullock, and
his horns are like the horns of utiicorns : with them
he shall push the people together to the ends of the
earth : and they are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and
they are the thousands of Manasseh.

Very magnificent were the gifts which were
in store for these favoured tribes. " The pre-
cious things," or, as it is afterwards said, " the
dews of heaven " and the deeps from beneath,
were to enrich their territories with the yearly
crops fostered by the genial warmth of the sun,
and the monthly productions, said in the margin
to be thrust forth by the moon, of herbage, and
possibly even figs, of which they appear to have
had many crops in the year. While, again, the
precious things of the earth, the timber, and
flocks, and herds, and not improbably the pre-

DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 12—17. 325

cious ores, were all to be found in the lot of
Joseph, in the hills and valleys of Ejahraim, Sa-
maria, and Bashan.

Still, amidst all these earthly advantages, the
greater blessing is not overlooked, or forgotten.
Moses prays that " the good will of Hira that
dwelt in the bush," may " come upon the head
of Joseph, and upon the top of the head of him
that was separated from his brethren," How
beautiful a reference is this, to that remarkable
manifestation of the second person in the ever-
blessed Trinity, on the day when Moses was first
called to his great mission, and saw the bush
burning with fire, but not consumed. The bless-
ing of that gracious Being had, from that hour,
rested upon the head of the great leader of the
Israelites, in a very peculiar manner, and he
now seeks to transfer the same unspeakable
mercy to the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh.
Yes, if we could bequeath to those, who are
dearest to us, all the precious things of heaven,
and earth, and sun, and moon, all would be but
as nothing, and less than nothing, and vanity,
if unaccompanied by " the good will of Him
that dwelt in the bush." The thousands of Ma-
nasseh and the ten thousands of Ephraim were
great and glorious, for Joshua was of the tribe
of Ephraim, and Gideon of that of Manasseh,
7

326 DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 12—17.

and vast and extensive were their conquests, since
Joshua alone destroyed or overcame tliirty-one
kings of the Canaanites ; yet was his highest
honour, and greatest glory, that he continually
possessed the presence and favour of his God ;
of whom he declared with iiis dying breath, that
" not one thing hath failed of all the good things
which the Lord his God" had spoken. How
delightful is it thus, in looking back to the elder
dispensation, to trace so distinctly the outlines
of all those great and distinguishing mercies
which are the peculiar features of the new. Our
light no doubt is greater, our blessings and our
privileges are greater, and yet who among ns
can hope for any higher mercy, than, that not
one thino; shall fail of all the o-ood thinos which
the Lord his God has spoken ; who can desire,
whether it be " in all time of his wealth, in the
hour of death, or in the day of judgment," a
more distinguished and surpassing blessing than
" the g-ood will of Him who dwelt in the bush ?"

DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 18-25. 327

EXPOSITION LXXV.

Deuteronomy xxxiii. 18 — 25.

18. And of Zebulun he said, Rejoice, Zebulun, in
thy going out ; and, Issachar, in thy tents.

19. They shall call the people unto the mountain;
there they shall offer sacrifices of righteousness ■• for
they shall suck of the abundance of the seas, and of
treasures hid in the sand.

Zebulun and Issachar are here united in one
blessing, as the children of Leah ; and probably,
for the same reason, their territories were after-
wards adjoining to each other in the land of
Canaan. The lot of Zebulun touched upon the
Mediterranean, while that of Issachar was sepa-
rated from the sea, by the half tribe of Manasseh.
There was evidently a reference to this difference
of position, in the difference of the blessing ;
for of Zebulun it was predicted, that he should
rejoice in his going out, and of Issachar in his
remaining at home. It is interesting to remark
how precisely this blessing of Moses agrees, not
only with the territorial possessions of Zebulun,
and with what came to pass in after years, but with
theoriginalblessingpronounced upon this tribe by
10

328 DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 18—25.

their great prog-enitor, Jacob himself : " Zebulun
shall dwell safely at the haven of the sea, and
he shall be for a haven of ships." " This was
the going out," in which he was to rejoice, and
" to suck of the abundance of the seas ;" for we
find he became a very thriving and prosperous
tribe in trading by sea, while Issachar contented
himself with his flocks and herds. It was thus
also that Zebulun had, in a peculiar manner, the
opportunity of calling the people, or the nations,
" unto the mountain," on which the Lord's house
■was afterwards established ; while who shall say,
that there might not here be a reference even
to a higher and a more distant blessing, when,
as we are told in the Gospel, " The land of
Zabulun, and the land of Naphthalin, by the
way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the
Gentiles ; the people which sat in darkness saw
a great light ; and to them which sat in the
region and shadow of death, light is sprung up."
How important to us, as a nation, is the con-
sideration that the same tribe which should be
blessed by " the abundance of the seas," was
expected also to use that abundance, and the
influence which their naval superiority bestowed
upon them, not merely to " suck" out these ad-
vantages, in the expressive language of Scrip-
ture, but in calling the nations with whom they

DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 18—25. 329

trafficked, to " offer sacrifices of righteousness."
Never shall we fulfil our great duties, and, we
believe, our great destiny, as a nation, until we
learn that commerce and Christianity should
travel hand in hand ; that no vessel should leave
our shores without carrying forth the bread of
life; and that in all our colonisations and settle-
ments, our first object should be, to endeavour
to advance the knowledge and the glory of our
God, and the spiritual kingdom of our Redeemer.
Had this been the feeling and spirit in which all
our enterprises had been undertaken, how dif-
ferent at this moment might have been the state
of those distant possessions which the Almighty
has been pleased to bestow upon our arms !
while, instead of our present precarious tenure
of the vast Eastern continent, it might have
been for ever united to us in the bonds of the
brotherhood of the Gospel of Christ.

20. And of Gad he said, Blessed be he that eri-
largeth Gad : he dwelleth as a lion, and teareth the
arm with the crown of the head,

21. And he provided the first part for himself, be-
cause there, in a -portion of the lawgiver, was he
seated ; and he came with the heads of the people, he
executed the justice of the Lord, and his judgments
with Israel.

The blessing of Gad evidently implies, how-

330 DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 18—25.

ever obscurely worded, that this should be a
fierce and valiant tribe, " dwelling as a lion ;"
and this seems fully corroborated, when mention
is made of them in the book of Chronicles, as
going over to David, where they are thus de-
scribed : " men of might, and men of war, fit
for the battle, that can handle shield and buckler,
whose faces were like the faces of lions :" " they
put to flight all them of the valleys, both toward
the east and toward the west." * It may seem,
at first sight, a little at variance with the
warlike attributes of this tribe, when it is pre-
dicted, " In a portion of the lawgiver was he
seated," as though he were to exercise some
judicial authority over his brethren. But upon
examining the settlement of Gad, we find this
prediction capable of a very different, and very
obvious interpretation. It says, " He provided
the first part for himself;" this was fulfilled by
his having the territories of Sihon, which were
the first conquered ; while the declaration that
he should be seated in a portion of the law-
giver," appears to have been fulfilled by Gad
receiving his settlement from the hand of Moses,
the lawgiver of Israel, while the nine tribes and
a half received them from the hand of Joshua.f

* 1 Chron. xii. 8, 15. f Joshua xiii. 7, 8.

DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 18-25. 331

22. And of Dan he said, Dan is a lion's whelp : he
shall leap from Bashan.

23. And of Naphtali he said, 0 Naphtali, satisfied
with favour, and full with the blessing of the Lord:
possess thou the west and the south.

24. And of Asher he said. Let Asher be blessed with
children ; let him be acceptable to his brethren, and
let him dip his foot in oil.

25. Thy shoes shall be iron and brass : and as thy
days, so shall thy strength be.

These concluding blessings upon the three re-
maining tribes of Dan and Naphtali and Asher,
are all obviously filled with both spiritual and
temporal mercies ; while the promise with which
they are wound up, has ever been among the
choicest possessions of the church of God, " As
thy days, so shall thy strength be." How many
a sinking sufferer has looked to this and been
holpen ! for surely the Lord's arm is not short-
ened that it should fulfil this blessed promise
only to his church of old ; no, thousands and
tens of thousands of the redeemed family of our
Lord have pleaded this blessed promise, and
have not been sent empty away. Is our day a
day of health and ])rosperity, replete with those
trials, under which some of the strongest have
fallen, great is our need of guiding and restrain-
ing grace, and if we earnestly seek it in the

332 DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 2G— 29.

name, and for the sake of the Lord Jesus, we
shall assuredly receive it, for " as our day, our
strength shall be." But is our lot cast in sick-
ness, and weakness, and poverty, our need is
not greater, though perhaps we feel it more ;
still the promise holds good, and " as our day
so shall our strength be ;" — yes, no day is so dark,
so dreary, so appalling, that the strength of
Omnipotence shall not be sufficient to bear the
trembling believer safely and peacefully to its
close. There is something eminently soothing
to the mind, fully embued with this persuasion,
in the well-known distich of the martyred re-
formers of the Church of England,

" Be the day wear)^ or be the day long.
At length it ringeth to even-song."

EXPOSITION LXXVI.

Deuteronomy xxxiii. 26 — 29.

26. There is none like unto the God of Jeshurun,
who ridetk upon the heaven in thy help, and in his
excellency on the sky.

'27. The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath

DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 26—29. 333

are the everlasting arms : and he shall thrust out the
enemy from before thee, and shall say, Destroy them.

How naturally do these verses follow the enu-
meration of blessings which precede them !
" There is none like unto the God of Jeshurun."
Surely it is impossible to survey either the judg-
ments or the mercies of Jehovah, without ar-
riving at the same conclusion. There is no God
like our God ; and when to this it can be truly
added, through our relationship in Christ Jesus,
that this " eternal God is our refuge, and under-
neath are the everlasting arms," we may joyfully
and thankfully add, " There is no safety like
our safety." Still we must be careful how we
indiscriminately appropriate such blessings to
ourselves ; Moses, indeed, was enabled to say,
" Lord, thou hast been our dwelling-place in all
generations," * and every baptized Christian
ought to be able to say the same. But the in-
quiry which each should make of himself is.
Have I any legitimate right to do so ? Have
I even desired these blessings? Have I, in
passing through life, earnestly wished, and prayer-
fully endeavoured to make the eternal God my
refuge, and my dwelling-place? It is vaiii
for those who have contented themselves witli
their dwelling-places of clay, and have sought
* Psalm xc. 1.

334 DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 2G— 29.

all their comfort and happiness therein, to be
surprised that they cannot appropriate this to
themselves ; that, in fact, the Almighty is no
refuge to them. God will not be what He is
not asked to be. " The Name of the Lord," says
the wise man, " is a strong tower, the righteous
runneth into it and is safe." But then to benefit
by the strength of the tower, the righteous must
betake himself to it : he must run into its en-
closure, or he will not, cannot be secure.

It seems remarkable, that Moses should thus
descant upon this peculiarity of Jehovah's re-
lationship to his people, just at the very moment
when they appeared to need it least, when the
promised land, with all its blessings, as their
lasting dwelling-place and refuge, was close at
hand. And yet how wise, thus, as it were, to
turn their thoughts from cities that should soon
crumble into dust, and houses that should return
to their kindred clay, to a refuge and a dwelling-
place which should never fail them ; and of
which, however great their prosperity, they
would assuredly, sooner or later, stand in need.
In our most prosperous moments, in our fairest
habitations, let us never forget, that " we look
for a city which hath foundations ; and whatever
else be our support, let our first and chiefest
trust be, that " underneath us are the everlasting

DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 26—29. 335

arms." This is the Christian's hope and the
Christian's strength; blessed be God, it is also,
through the merits and intercession of his Re-
deemer, the Christian's birthright and his in-
alienable possession.

28. Israel then shall dicell in safety alone : the
fountain of Jacob shall be upon a land of corn and
wine ; also his heavens shall drop down dew.

29. Happy art thou, 0 Israel : who is like unto
thee, 0 people saved by the Lord, the shield of thy
help, and who is the sivord of thy excellency ! and
thine enemies shall be found liars unto thee ; and thou
shall tread upon their high places.

These words conclude this remarkable chapter
of benedictions ; and as Moses, in the preceding
portion, had poured forth his blessings upon each
tribe separately, and individually, so he here
finishes by one grand and comprehensive bless-
ing upon the whole collective nation. " Israel
shall dwell in safety and alone." Such was the
gracious promise, embracing and connecting two
most important points in Israel's future history.
They were to dwell in safety, but they were to
dwell alone : the one was probably dependent
upon the other. Intermingling, as they were
now about to do, to a certain extent, with all the
surrounding nations of God-forgetting idolaters,
it was essential that they should learn to " live

330 DEUTERONOMY XXXIII. 20—29.

alone," for it was, as tliey almost immediately
found upon leaving tlie desert, absolutely impos-
sible to unite Avilh those around them, without
becoming the partakers of their sins and of their
punishments. Well would it be for us all, to
keep this great truth constantly in view, that, to
a certain extent, the safety of the Christian will
ever depend upon his exclusiveness. Not more
surely was Israel a chosen people from among
the nations of the world, than that Christians are
also called to be, as the apostle declares, " a
chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy
nation, a peculiar people,"* separate from those
that are without, " hating even the garments
spotted with the flesh," and " not of the world,"
even as Christ was not of the world. Dwell-
ing thus comparatively alone, they also will
dwell in safety, for they are what Moses here
declares the children of Israel to have been, a
" people saved by the Lord." Blessed and com-
forting title, and fully agreeing with that declara-
ration of the Evangelist, that " the Lord added
to the church daily, such as should be saved."
May we each, and all, be among that blessed
number, and that we may possess the full enjoy-
ment of this privilege even here below, let us
endeavour to be much " alone " with God. The
* 1 Peter ii. 9.

DEUTERONOMY XXXIV. 1—5. 337

more we are enabled, by tbe Sjjirit of grace, to
cultivate the habit of close, intimate, secret com-
munion with our heavenly Father, the more
assuredly we shall dwell in safety. And further
than this, may we not add, that the more easy
will be that transition which awaits us all, and
which will simply transfer the real children of
God, from a land of prayer, into a land of praise,
without even a momentary interruption to that
blessed intercourse, which even here is the joy
of their hearts, and which shall there be their
portion for ever.

EXPOSITION LXXVII.

Deuteronomy xxxiv. 1 — 5.

1. And Moses went vp from the plains of Moab
unto the mountain of Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that
is over against Jericho. And the Lord shewed him all
the land of Gilead, unto Dan,

2. And all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim, and
Manasseh, and all the land of Jvdah, unto the utmost
sea,

3. And the south, and the plain of the valley of
Jericho, the city of palm trees, unto Zoar.

4. And the Lord said unto him. This is the land

Q

338 DEUTERONOMY XXXIV. 1—5.

which I swore unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto
Jacob, saying, I will give it %into thy seed : I have
caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt
not go over thither.

We have now arrived at the close of the life
of that great lawgiver and prophet, whose five
important and invaluable volumes we have been
considering. Who shall tell either good or evil
by anything that is done under the sun ? We
might have thought that the most happy and
most honourable end of Moses, would have been
to depart, as Israel of old, like a full shock of
corn, gathered in in his season, in the presence
of his children and his grandchildren, blessing
and being blessed ; exclaiming, in all the exulta-
tion of anticipated glory, with his dying breath,
" I have waited for thy salvation, 0 God ;" or
with the cheerful resignation of him, who, full
of years as of grace, exclaimed in after ages,
" Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in
peace, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation.''
Far different was the end of Moses. Enjoying
still, at one hundred and twenty years of age,
all the freshness and vigour of the strongest
youth, capable not only of conquering, but of
enjoying the promised land, his natural strength
not abated, nor even his eye grown dim, he hears
8

DEUTERONOMY XXXIV. 1—5. 339

the Almighty's summons, " Come up hither,"
and immediately obeys and goes up alone to die.
Great pains are evidently taken, by mentioning
the physical state of Moses, to show us that this
was not in the course of nature, but of God's
providential government, and in fulfilment of a
justly-merited sentence. But we will not dwell
upon that portion of the narrative ; we have al-
ready endeavoured to learn the lesson which it
was intended to teach. Let us rather look at
the mercy of God even in the fulfilment of his
sternest judgments.

It is true that Moses was bidden to go up
alone into the mount, but when there, he was
alone no longer, the great Jehovah met with
him and blessed him there, and " shewed him,"
no doubt miraculously, for it was far too exten-
sive a pros])ect even for the undimmed eye of
mere mortality to command, all the land of
Canaan, even " unto the utmost sea," and there
at once renewed the promise and the threatening,
" I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes,
but thou shall; not go over thither."

5. So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in
the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord.

At the very time that the word of inspiration
tells us that Moses died — died in fulfilment of a

Q 2

340 DEUTERONOMY XXXIV. 1—5.

sentence which his disobedience had deserved,
it adds, in a very marked and striking manner,
the honourable appellation which the Almighty
had awarded him, " Moses, the servant of the
Lord." Far beyond, and far above all other
titles was this ; Moses had refused to be called
the son of Pharaoh's daughter, although it might
have opened a passage to him to the throne of
Egypt. Moses had " reigned as a king in
Jeshurun ;" but what were these, what were all
the honours of earth, compared with the distinc-
tive appellation of " the servant of the Lord ?"
The weakest Christian upon earth may, by God's
grace, deserve this title ; the brightest archangel
in heaven can aspire no higher. We were each
of us addressed by our Church at our baptism,
in the language of charity and hope, with this
mark of high and honourable distinction, and
urged " to continue Christ's faithful soldier and
servant unto his life's end." Have we ever
considered w hat this implied ? Here is a va-
luable opportunity for so doing. Moses was
called by the Spirit of God, " the servant of the
Lord." We have been so denominated by his
Church. Let us then examine what resemblance
exists between the life and conduct of Moses and
of ourselves. There must necessarily be, in all
ages, a family likeness between the servants of

DEUTERONOMY XXXIV. 1—5. 341

the Most High, for they are the children of the
living God, and inheritors of his kingdom. Let
us see if we can trace it, let us see whether the
baptismal covenant has been kept or broken,
whether the faith and repentance here promised
for us have indeed been ours, and whether we
have any right to the titles by which we were
then addressed.

The most prominent features of the life of
Moses are summed up in the eleventh chapter
to the Hebrews ; we are there informed, that he
chose " rather to suffer affliction with the people
of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a
season ;" do we find anything like this in our
own lives and conversation ? Do we readily
reject, nay, even abhor, the pleasures of sin,
however attractively they may be presented to
us, and east in our lot with the people of God,
when little is to be gained beyond contempt and
obloquy ? Moses esteemed " the reproach of
Christ greater riches than the treasures of
Egypt;" have we any similar feeling? are we
content to take up the cross and to follow Christ,
and to bear his reproach, not only from the
claims of duty, but from the higher feelings of
gratitude and love, when every worldly prospect
and attainment is thrown into the opposite scale,
and strongly and constantly opposes our decision ?

342 DEUTERONOMY XXXIV. 1—5.

Moses forsook Egyj)t, the scene of all liis worldly
honours and agg'randisements, not from the fear
of Pharaoh, but " as seeing Him who is in-
visible." Is this a powerful motive, also, within
our breasts ? To how many acts of piety, de-
votedness, and charity, have we been led, for
instance, during the past week, and from how
many acts, and words, and thoughts of evil, have
we been deterred, not by the fear, or the eye of
man, but simply " as seeing Him who is in-
visible ?" These are indeed a very few, but they
are fair and scriptural tests whether we are
*' the servants and the children of the Lord,"
" not with eye-service, as men-pleasers ; but as
the servants of Christ, doing the will of God
from the heart.'' May the Lord enable us to
answer them with candour now, and with com-
fort on that day, when the secrets of all hearts
shall be disclosed, and when the Lord shall come
to take account of his servants, and to give to
every man according as his works have been.

DEUTERONOMY XXXIV, 6—12. 343

EXPOSITION LXXVIII.

Deuteronomy xxxiv. 6 — 12.

6. Ajid he buried him in a valley in the land of
Moab, over against Beth-peor : but no man knmveth
of his sepulchre unto this day.

7. And Moses was an hundred and twenty years old
when he died: his eye luas not dim, nor his natural
force abated.

Thus Moses died, and thus was he honoured
in his death, that the Almighty buried him.
" Right dear in the sight of the Lord is the
death of his saints." Even their very dust is
precious.

It seems probable, that the mention made, in
the Epistle of St. Jude,* of Michael the arch-
angel disputing with the devil about the body
of Moses, has reference to this transaction. The
utmost secrecy was evidently observed as to the
particular spot in the valley of Moab, where
the body of Moses was laid ; for it says expressly,
" No man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this

* Jude 9.

344. DEUTERONOMY XXXIV. 6—12.

day;" nothing, therefore, can be more likely,
than that the motive of the deviPs contention
with Michael was to obtain the body, for the
purpose of burying it in some public and well-
known spot, that it might thereafter furnish to
the Jewish church a strong temptation to hero-
worship, which so extensively prevailed among
the heathen world, but from which the Jews
were ever most mercifully preserved. That
Satan was not permitted to do this, is an ad-
ditional proof of the considerate mercy and
tender guardianship of Him who watches un-
remittingly over his people, and " willeth not
that any should perish."

8. And the children of Israel wept for Moses in the
plains of Moab thirty days : so the days of weeping
and mourning for Moses were ended.

Let no man say that these natural expressions
of grief are wrong, or that the deepest feelings
of regret for those who are taken from us are
incompatible with the highest feelings of faith
and resignation towards that Being by whom
they are removed. Such feelings are compatible
with the most perfect spiritual state of which
humanity is capable, or they could not have been
exhibited by the man Christ Jesus, at the tomb
of Lazarus. We may, then, sorrow, not indeed

DEUTERONOMY XXXIV. 6—12. 345

" as men without hope," but we may deeply
lament, when those we love are taken from us,
when " the godly man ceaseth from among the
children of men," for who shall, on this side
heaven, replace the parent, the wife, the child,
the friend that was as our own soul unto us ?
Yet is there one who is willing- to become these,
and more than all of these unto us, and who
" stands at the door and knocks." Alas ! how
often unavailingly, how long unadmitted ! Surely
in moments of affliction and sorrow, the heart
cannot remain closed, barred, unopened to so
ranch kindness, and to so much love. Do we
address any, now, in sorrow ? To you the Saviour
would appear peculiarly to address himself. You
have lost one whom nothing earthly can re-
place. True, but " the second Adam is of the
heaven, heavenly," and He can fill the void
which a whole world of creatures cannot occupy.
He offers himself to you in the fullest, freest,
tenderest manner ; open to Him in faith, open
to Him in love, open to Him in prayer, and you
will soon be enabled to say with the Church of
old, " My beloved is mine, and I am his." This
is a union which shall know neither separation
nor end ; a presence that cannot forsake you, a
love that cannot disappoint you.

" Happy are the people who are in such a

6

346 DEUTERONOMY XXXIV. 6—12.

case, yea, blessed are the people who have the
Lord for their God."

9. And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit
of wisdom ; for Moses had laid his hands upon him :
and the children of Israel hearkened unto him, and did
as the Lord commanded Moses.

10. And there arose not a prophet since in Israel
like unto Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face.

11. In all the signs and the wonders ivhich the Lord
sent him to do in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh, and to
all his servants and to all his land,

12. And ifi all that mighty hand, and in all the
great terror which Moses shewed in the sight of all
Israel.

These words — and indeed, in all probability,
the whole of this chapter — were evidently added
some years after the death of Moses, and most
likely by Joshua, unless the manner in which,
in that case, he would here be made to speak
of himself, might seem to militate against it.
What he states, however, is simply a matter of
fact, that Joshua " was full of the spirit of
wisdom," in consequence of Moses having " laid
his hands upon him ;" but he clearly disavows
all equality with Moses, when he so distinctly
says, " There arose not a prophet since in Israel
like unto Moses."

No doubt the peculiar intention with which

DEUTERONOMY XXXIV. 6—12. 347

these words were added, was to keep alive in the
mind of every true Israelite, the unfulfilled pre-
diction delivered by Moses himself, when he
declared, " The Lord said unto me, I will raise
them up a prophet from among their brethren,
like unto thee, and it shall come to pass, that
whosoever will not hearken unto my words which
he shall speak in my name, I will require it of
him." * Nothing could be more natural, than
that the Israelites should wish to interpret this
of Joshua, upon whom they had seen Moses
solemnly lay hands, and on whom the Spirit of
wisdom had descended. It was, therefore, most
important that this mistake, if it existed, should
be corrected, and at any rate, the possibility of
it prevented ; this was effectually done by the
declaration before us, in which the writer (whe-
ther Joshua or not, is of little consequence)
solemnly asserts that no such prophet had the
Lord then raised up.

No, it remained for after days and happier
times to witness the fulfilment of this and all
the other prophecies which pointed to the coming
of that Messiah, of whom Moses was but a feeble
type. Deep, indeed, and heartfelt, should be our
gratitude that our lot had been cast under a
dispensation in which all has been realized, all
* Deut. xviii. 17, 18, 19.

348 DEUTERONOMY XXXIV. 6—12.

fulfilled ; the " Prophet like unto" Moses, but
infinitely his superior, has been raised up, and
has done for us what Moses could not do for
the Israelites, viz. opened a way into the promised
land ; and as our great forerunner, as the apostle
declares, " for us entered in thither himself."
Let us see, then, that we neglect not Him that
speaketh from heaven ; or, as we are here as-
sured, God " will require it of us." Let us be
careful that we suffer nothing to stand between
us and this Divine Leader, and least of all that
we allow anything to occupy his place. Sacra-
ments, ordinances, churches, are only good, in-
asmuch as they lead us to Christ; and not only
useless, but infinitely worse than useless, when
they incline us to rest satisfied in themselves,
or to substitute anything for union with Him,
our living Head, and communion, through Him,
with the Father of our spirits. May it please
God, at this time more especially, to carry home
this great and blessed truth to the hearts of his
people; may the Lord Jesus Christ be made
unto each and all of us, " Wisdom, and righteous-
ness, and sanctification, and redemption ;" may
He, indeed, be to us, " All in all," for life, for
death, for time, and for eternity. And may God
of his infinite mercy grant that neither learning,
nor authority, a desire for a fanciful and unat-

DEUTERONOMY XXXIV. 6—12. 349

tainable unity, nor a respect for some who ought
" not so to have learned Christ," may be per-
mitted to turn us back to those " weak and
beggarly elements," which for centuries misled
and enslaved the world.

THE END.

LONDON:

C. J. PALMRR, PRINTER, SAVOV STREET, STRAND.

BY THE SAME AUTHOR.

PUBLISHED BY

J. HATCHARD AND SON, 187, PICCADILLY.

(opposite the ALBANY.)

Second Edition.

A FAMILY EXPOSITION of the PENTA-
TEUCH. VOLS. I. and II. containing GENESIS to LEVI-
TICUS.

Fifteenth Edition.
2 NINE LECTURES upon the HISTORY of
SAINT PETER. 12rao. price" 4s. 6d. cloth.

Fifteenth Edition.

3. EIGHT LECTURES on the HISTORY of

JACOB. 12mo. price 4s. 6d. cloth.

Ninth Edition.

4. TWELVE LECTURES on the HISTORY of
ABRAHAM. 12mo. price 5s. 6d. cloth.

Eighth Edition.

5. TWELVE LECTURES on the HISTORY of

ST. PAUL. Parti. 12ino. price 5s. 6ii. cloth.
Seventh Edition.

6. HISTORY of SAINT PAUL. Part II. 12mo

price 5s. 6d. cloth.

Eighth Edition.

7. LECTURES upon the HISTORY of our LORD
and SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST. Part L 12mo. price 5s. 6(f.
cloth.

Works by the same Author.

Sixth Edition.

8. HISTORY of our LORD and SAVIOUR

JESUS CHRIST. Part II. 12aio. price 5s. 6d. cloth.
Sixth Edition.

9. CONCLUDING LECTURES on the HIS-
TORY of our LORD and SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST. Part
III. 12mo. price 3s. 6d. cloth.

Seventh Edition.

10. DISCOURSES upon some of the DOCTRINAL
ARTICLES of the CHURCH of ENGLAND. l2mo. price 5s. 6c/.
cloth.

Fourth Edition.

11. SERMONS preached in TRINITY CHURCH,
CHELSEA. ]2mo. price 6s. cloth.

Third Edition.

12. A PRACTICAL EXPOSITION of the

EPISTLES to the SEVEN CHURCHES of ASIA. 12mo.
price 5s. 6J, cloth.

Third Edition.

13. LECTURES on the HISTORY of ELISHA.

12ino. price 5s. 6d, cloth.

Sixth Edition.

14. TWO DISCOURSES upon the TRIAL of the
SPIRITS. Price 4s. 6d.

Seventh Edition.

15. TWO SERMONS on the SACRAMENT.

12mo. Is. stiff covers.

Works published by J. Hatchard a?id Son.

BY THE LORD BISHOP OF CHESTER.
A PRACTICAL EXPOSITION of the EPISTLE

of ST. PAUL to the ROMANS, and the FIRST EPISTLE to
the CORINTHIANS, Bv JOHN BIRD SUMNER, D.D.,
LORD BISHOP OF CHESTER. 1 voL 8vo., or 2 vols. 12mo.,
price 9s. cloth.

Btf the same Author.

2. A PRACTICAL EXPOSITION of the GOS-
PELS of ST. MATTHEW and ST. MARK, in the form of
Lectures, intended to assist the practice of domestic instruction
and devotion. 'Jhe Sixth Edition. One vol. 8vo., or two vols.
12mo., price 9s. cloth.

3. A PRACTICAL EXPOSITION of the GOS-
PEL of ST. LUKE, in the form of Lectures. The Third Edition.
In one vol., 8vo., or in two vols. 12mo., price 9s. cloth.

4. A PRACTICAL EXPOSITION of the GOS-
PEL of ST. JOHN, in the form of Lectures. Third Edition.
In one vol. 8vo., or two vols. 12mo., price 9s. cloth,

5. A PRACTICAL EXPOSITION of the ACTS

of the APOSTLES, in the form of Lectures. In one vol. 8vo.,
or two vols. 12mo., price 9s. cloth.

6. A PRACTICAL EXPOSITION of the GE-
NERAL EPISTLES of JAMES, PETER, JOHN, and JUDE,
in the form of Lectures. In one vol. 8vo., or two vols. l2mo.,
price 9s. cloth.

7. CHRISTIAN CHARITY; its Obligations and

Objects, with reference to the present state o( Society. In a Series
of Sermons. Second Edition, 12mo., price 6s., or 8vo., price 9s.
cloth.

8. APOSTOLICAL PREACHING CONSIDER-

ED, in an Examination of St. Paul's Epistles. Also, Four Sermons
on Subjects relating to the Christian Ministrv, and preached on
difiFerent occasions. Eighth Edition, enlarged, 8vo., 10s. 6d.
cloth.

9. SERMONS on the PRINCIPAL FESTIVALS

of the CHRISTIAN CHURCH: to which are added. Three
Sermons on Good Friday. Fifth Edition, 8vo., 10s. 6d. cloth.

Worhs pnhlishcd by J. Hatchard and Son.
10. The EVIDENCES of CHRISTIANITY, derived

from its NAI'URE and RECEPTION, Sixth Edition, 8vo.
10s. 6d, Or in one vol. I'imo., price 6s. clotli.

11. A SERIES of SERMONS on the CHRIS-
TIAN FAITH and CHARACTER. Eiglith Edition, 8vo.,
10s. 6d. ; or 12mo., 6s., cloth,

12. ATREATISEon the RECORDS of the CREA-
TION, and on tlie MORAL ATlRIBUTESofthe CREATOR.
Fifth Edition. Two vols. 8vo. 1/. Is. cloth.

13. FOUR SERMONS on SUBJECTS relating

to the CHRISTIAN MINISTRY. Preiiched on different occa-
sions, 8vo., 3s. sewed,

14. A CHARGE delivered to the Clergy of the

Diocese of Chester, at the Visitation held in June and September,
1841. Second edition. 8vo., Price \s.6d,, sewed. Or the

15. FIVE CHARGES delivered to the CLERGY

of the Diocese of CHESTER, at the Triennial Visitations in 1829,
18.'32, 1835, 1838, and 1841. In one vol. 8vo., price 6s. cloth,

N.B. The whole of the above works may now be had, bound
uniformly in cloth.

REV. HUGH M'NEILE.

i. LECTURES on the SYMPATHIES, SUFFER-
INGS, and RESU RRECTION of the LORD .lESUS CHRIST ;
delivered in St. Jude's Church, Liverpool, during Passion Week
and Easter Day. 12mo, price 4s. 6d. cloth.

2. LECTURES ON THE CHURCH OF ENG-
LAND, delivered in London, INIarch, 1840. Eighth Edition.
1 vol. 12mo. price 5s. clotli.

By tlte same Author.

3. SERMONS on the SECOND ADVENT of our

LORD JESUS CHRIST, with Notes, Fifth Edition, 12mo.,
price 4s. 6d, cloth,

4. SEVENTEEN SERMONS. Third Edition-

12mo., price 7s, cloth.

.5. POPULAR LECTURES on the PROFHE-

i-ies relative to the JEWISH NATION, Fourth Edition.
12mo,, price 4s, 6d, cloth.

Works published by J. Hatckurd and Son.

REV'. W. GOODE'S WORKS ON TRACTARIANISM, &c.

(Dedicated to the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop
of London.)

THE DIVINE RULE OF FAITH AND PRAC-
TICE; or, A DEFENCE of the CATHOLIC DOCTRINE
that HOLY SCRIPTURE has been since the times of the Apo-
stles the Sole Divine Rule of Faith and Practice to the
Church, against the dangerous errors of the Authors of the
Tracts for the Times and the Romanists, as, particularly,
that the Rule of Faith is " made up of Scripture and tradition to-
gether ;" &c. In which also the doctrines of the Apostolical Suc-
cession, the Eucharistic Sacrifice, &c. are fully discussed. Bv
WILLIAM GOODE, iM.A., Rector of St. Antholin. Two vols.
8vo. Price 32s. cloth.

2. THE CASE AS IT IS, or a Reply to a Letter of

Dr. Pusey to his Grace the Archbishop of Ciinterbury ; including
a compendious statement of the doctrines and views of the Tracta-
tors as expressed by themselves. Third Edition, price Is.
sewed.

3. SOME DIFFICULTIES in the late CHARGE
OF THE LORD BISHOP OF OXFORD, respectfully pointed
out in a Letter to his Lordship. Second Edition, price Is.
sewed.

5. MODERN CLAIMS to the GIFTS of the SPI-
RIT, Stated and Examined. 2nd. Edition, with Appendix. 8vo.
Price 10s. 6d.

BY THE LORD BISHOP OF CALCUTTA.

1. SERMONS DELIVERED in INDIA. 1 vol.

8vo. price 125. cloth.

2. THE EVIDENCES of CHRISTIANITY;

illustrating, in a popular manner, the External and Internal
Proofs of the Divine Authority, and Plenary Inspiration of
the Holy Scriptures. Delivered in the Parish Church of St.
Mary, Islington. In 2 vols, small 8vo. Price 9s.

3. THE DIVINE AUTHORITY and PERPE-
TUAL OBLIGATION of the LORD'S DAY, asserted in
SEVEN SERMONS. Third Edition. 12mo. price 3s. 6d. cloth.

Works published by J. Hatchard and Son.

4. SERMONS on VARIOUS SUBJECTS of
CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE and PRACTICE. Sixth Edition.
1 vol.Svo. price 12*., or in one vol. 12mo., price 5«.

5. SERMONS ADDRESSED to CHILDREN on

EASTER TUESDAYS. Fifth Edition. I8mo., price \s. sewed,

6. A PLAIN and AFFECTIONATE ADDRESS
to YOUNG PERSONS about to be CONFIRMED. Sixteenth
Edition. Price id. sewed.

7. A PLAIN and AFFECTIONATE ADDRESS
to YOUNG PERSONS previously to receiving the LORD'S
SUPPER. Eleventh Edition, 12mo. price 4rf. sewed.

8. THE SUFFICIENCY OF HOLY SCRIP-
TURE as the RULE OF FAIIH; being a Sermon delivered at
the Cathedral Church of St. John, Calcutta, at an Ordination
holden on Sunday, May 2, 1841. Second Edition, 12mo., price
9d. New and Cheaper Edition.

Dedicated by permission to II. R. H. the Duchess of Kent.

AN EXPOSITION OF VARIOUS PASSAGES

OF HOLY SCRIPTURE, adapted to the use of Families for
every day throughout the year. By the Rev. JOHN WILLIAM
SMYTH D. D., Incumbent of W'oolfardisworthy, (Devonshire.
3 vols, 8vo. price 1/. lis. 6d. cloth.

A LETTER TO A FRIEND ON THE EVI-

DENCES AND THEORY OF CHRISTIANITY. By LORD
LINDSAY. 1 vol. 12mo. price 3s. cloth.

New and Ciieap Edition.

THOUGHTS ON THE PARENTAL CHA-
RACTER OF GOD. By Captain Sir WILLIAM EDWARD
PARRY, R.N. Third Edition. 18mo. price is. 6d. cloth.

^